Are E-Cigarettes a Boon, a Menace or Both?

Jun 27

From: New York Times Editorial

Rapidly growing numbers of consumers are turning to electronic cigarettes to satisfy their nicotine addiction without inhaling the carcinogens and toxic chemicals found in tobacco smoke. Buyers need to beware. Unlike nicotine gum and skin patches, electronic cigarettes have not been evaluated for safety or effectiveness.

Global sales of electronic cigarettes, although small compared with overall tobacco sales, have been rising quickly in both Europe and the United States. Several major tobacco companies have announced plans to introduce new or revamped e-cigarettes. And regulators for the European Union and Britain have released plans to regulate e-cigarettes more stringently, possibly starting in 2016.

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Can new FDA graphic warning labels for tobacco pass a first amendment legal challenge?

Jun 22

Medical Press

When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) imposes new graphic warning labels for tobacco products, they can survive a First Amendment challenge if they depict health consequences and their effectiveness is supported by adequate scientific evidence, says a Georgetown University Medical Center public health expert and attorney

Graphic tobacco —which combine images with —are a widely used tool for reducing in other countries, but the argues they are unconstitutional in the United States.

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Future of E-Cigarettes in Question on European Crackdown

Jun 18

From: Bloomberg

By Albertina Torsoli & Makiko Kitamura

Just when smokers thought it was okay to inhale again, a debate over the safety of electronic-cigarettes is threatening to cut off their nicotine.

Smokeless and odorless e-cigarettes are catching on, touted in the U.S. and Europe as less harmful than real ones because they don’t contain tar, arsenic and other cancer-causing toxins. Yet a U.K. government decision this week to treat the steel tubes as a medicine and a plan by France to ban them from public venues raises questions about what health risks the devices carry.

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Cancer fighters’ next target: flavored tobacco sales

Jun 16

By Michael Gormley of The Associated Press

 
ALBANY, N.Y. – They come in brightly colored, shiny packages in fun flavors like chocolate, blueberry, gummy bear, wine and pink berry. But the American Cancer Society says the little cigars and packages of loose tobacco are aimed at kids and are just as deadly as cigarettes.The American Cancer Society is pushing to make New York the first state to enact a comprehensive restriction on the sale of candy- and fruit-flavored cigarillos, chewing tobacco and tobacco used in water pipes. Its proposal would restrict the sale of all fruit- and candy-flavored tobacco products to tobacco shops, banning those products from convenience stories.Maine bans the sale of larger “premium” flavored cigars and other states including Maryland have proposed laws, according to the University of Maryland Law School. New York City and Providence, R.I., also have restricted the sale of flavored tobacco.

“If New York acts, it would be the first state in the nation, and turbocharge efforts nationally,” said Blair Horner, vice president of advocacy at the American Cancer Society and Cancer Action Network of New York and New Jersey.

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Proposed NY Flavor Ban Would ‘Leapfrog FDA Regulation’

Jun 12
NYACS responds to American Cancer Society’s push to ban flavored tobacco sales in c-stores
cspnews.com

 

ALBANY, N.Y. — First came Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s proposal to ban tobacco displays in New York City. Then, both New York City and state introduced legislation to raise the age to purchase tobacco products to 21. Now, the American Cancer Society is pushing for New York to become the first state to restrict the sales of all flavored tobacco products (although New York City and Providence, R.I., have already banned the sales of such products).

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E-Cigarettes Want Your Attention Now (Before the FDA Steps In)

Jun 10

From: Bloomberg/BusinessWeek

By Justin Bachman

The electronic cigarette is about to have its turn in the spotlight. The battery-powered gadgets transform nicotine and other substances into an inhaled vapor and have been marketed as a safer alternative to tobacco smoke, which is drawn into the lungs and increases cancer risks. The rapidly growing e-cigarette business—expected to top $1 billion in annual sales in the next few years—is racing to command a bigger share of spending among smokers and potential smokers ahead of possible regulations from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

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French E-Cig Ban Jumping The Gun: No Real Dangers Of Electronic Cigarettes

Jun 05

Editor’s Note:  The Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association’s Position Paper, “E-cigarettes in the Draft Revised Tobacco Product Directive: Avoiding a ban on a less harmful alternative” is attached here.

From: Medical Daily

French health officials announced future plans to ban smoking electronic cigarettes in public places and to restrict sales to minors.

By Justin Caba

Health officials in France have revealed plans to ban electronic cigarettes from  all public settings and put restrictions on advertising. French Health Minister, Marisol Touraine, stated on Friday efforts will be similar to the 2007 initiative aimed toward  lowering the number of regular tobacco users.

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