Flavored tobacco products are drawing in thousands of young customers from the East Coast to Riverside, Calif., a new government report finds.
70 percent of middle and high school students who have used a tobacco product in the last 30 days have used a flavored product, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in last week’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. According to the CDC, flavored tobacco is luring the younger generation into nicotine addiction, and condemning them to seek help at drug rehab centers later in life or risk serious health issues.
The Statistics
In addition to the 70 percent of young students who have used a flavored product, the 2014 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) found that 63.3 percent of students who smoke tobacco had used a flavored e-cigarette, 60.6 percent had used flavored hookah tobacco, 63.5 percent had used a flavored cigar, 58.8 percent had used a flavored smokeless tobacco, 53.6 percent had used menthol cigarettes and 42.3 percent had used flavored tobacco in pipes.
The Rise of E-cigarettes
In the halls of high schools from Riverside to the Mid-Atlantic, e-cigarettes are the most popular. While the use of flavors other than menthol has been banned from traditional cigarettes since 2009, e-cigarettes have no such regulations; they come in a variety of flavors such as strawberry, appletini and Irish crème. These e-cigs typically contain the highly addictive drug nicotine, sending young kids to drug rehab centers every year for addiction.
Calls for the FDA to React
As e-cigarettes are so new to the tobacco market, current FDA regulations are lagging far behind. While flavored cigars and e-cigs are illegal for persons under 18 in Riverside, Calif.,—laws regarding e-cigs vary by state—it is still relatively easy for minors to get their hands on them.
The majority of adult cigarette smokers started smoking before the age of 18, the CDC finds. Smoking is the leading cause of heart disease, stroke and cancer.
The FDA needs to address these new methods of tobacco flavorings in order to reduce the rate of flavored tobacco use among teenagers, and keep them out of rehab centers and hospitals.
Natalie Benoy is a health writer reporter for Fusion 360, an SEO and content marketing agency. Information provided by Miramar Recovery Center. Follow on Twitter
70 percent of middle and high school students who have used a tobacco product in the last 30 days have used a flavored product, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in last week’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. According to the CDC, flavored tobacco is luring the younger generation into nicotine addiction, and condemning them to seek help at drug rehab centers later in life or risk serious health issues.
The Statistics
In addition to the 70 percent of young students who have used a flavored product, the 2014 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) found that 63.3 percent of students who smoke tobacco had used a flavored e-cigarette, 60.6 percent had used flavored hookah tobacco, 63.5 percent had used a flavored cigar, 58.8 percent had used a flavored smokeless tobacco, 53.6 percent had used menthol cigarettes and 42.3 percent had used flavored tobacco in pipes.
The Rise of E-cigarettes
In the halls of high schools from Riverside to the Mid-Atlantic, e-cigarettes are the most popular. While the use of flavors other than menthol has been banned from traditional cigarettes since 2009, e-cigarettes have no such regulations; they come in a variety of flavors such as strawberry, appletini and Irish crème. These e-cigs typically contain the highly addictive drug nicotine, sending young kids to drug rehab centers every year for addiction.
Calls for the FDA to React
As e-cigarettes are so new to the tobacco market, current FDA regulations are lagging far behind. While flavored cigars and e-cigs are illegal for persons under 18 in Riverside, Calif.,—laws regarding e-cigs vary by state—it is still relatively easy for minors to get their hands on them.
The majority of adult cigarette smokers started smoking before the age of 18, the CDC finds. Smoking is the leading cause of heart disease, stroke and cancer.
The FDA needs to address these new methods of tobacco flavorings in order to reduce the rate of flavored tobacco use among teenagers, and keep them out of rehab centers and hospitals.
Natalie Benoy is a health writer reporter for Fusion 360, an SEO and content marketing agency. Information provided by Miramar Recovery Center. Follow on Twitter