Trump goes ahead with flavored e-cigarettes can hit adults trying to quit

The Trump administration's looming ban on the sale of flavored e-cigarettes is aimed at preventing young people from evaporating, but it could have unintended consequences for adults who use these products to quit smoking.

The Trump administration is arguing for flavors that cherries and mint are dealing with a juvenile "epidemic" and must be removed from the market.

But experts say that flavored vapes have also helped some adults get rid of cigarettes, one of the leading causes of death in the United States

"Many ex-smokers want to go back to smoking," said Dr. Michael Siegel, professor and expert on tobacco control at Boston University.

"They are addicted to nicotine. If their products are taken off the shelf, most people will not be able to quit cold turkey. There will be no way for them to procure their products, so they will return to smoking," he added.

Tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes can still be sold after the ban goes into effect, but the most popular flavors, such as menthol, mint and mango, will all be removed from the market.

Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said the new regulations would be issued in "several weeks."

President Trump [1[ads1]9659007] Donald John Trump's Supreme Court Comes to Trump's Immigration Aid Trump Fails Trade Policy Trump talks with Netanyahu to discuss possible US-Israel defense agreement MORE made the announcement this week, citing rising youth gun prices and a plethora of gun-related illnesses that have killed six people and cycled hundreds. “We can't let people get sick. And we can't get our kids so affected, "he said.

It frustrates experts who believe the administration is in conflict with government-regulated commercially-sold e-cigarettes with the illegal black-market products linked together

While federal health officials say they have not identified a common product or cause behind the diseases, most states point to illegal THC vapors sold on the black market and may contain ingredients that are harmful if inhaled in the lungs. such as vitamin E.

"Banning flavored e-cigarettes won't do anything about these deaths," Siegel said.

When e-cigarettes came to the US market 12 years ago, they presented smokers with a less harmful alternative to cigarettes, without tar or toxic gases associated with tobacco burning.

E-cigarettes still contain nicotine, the addictive substance found in ice and the long-term effects of gunfire are still unknown.

While there are debates over whether vaping is an effective tool to help people quit cigarettes, experts claim it is almost certainly better than smoking, killing 480,000 a year, per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But public health professionals became frightened when government surveys showed that teens were vaping increasingly.

About 28 percent of adolescents surveyed said they had recently used e-cigarettes in 2019, according to preliminary data released by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week.

The transition to ban tasting can reduce adolescent evaporation rates, experts say, but it can also mean adults who vape can start using more cigarettes.

"The availability of flavors and a wide variety of flavors are important for people who use e-cigarettes as a way to transfer combustible cigarette products," said Lauren Pacek, assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at Duke University.

A study published in the journal Substance Use & Misuse as Pacek co-authored found that 17 percent of people who both vaped and smoked said they would increase the use of regular cigarettes if their tastes were limited to tobacco and menthol.

"I think there is a potential for a taste ban to discourage use in youth, but there may be unintended consequences among other populations," Pacek said.

Raymond Niaura, a professor at New York University, a psychologist and expert on tobacco addiction and treatment, said the evidence is that flavors are an important factor for smokers switching to vape products.

"Many people who want to switch from tobacco will not be reminded of the taste and smell of smoking cigarettes," he said.

Banning the sale of flavored e-cigarettes risks illegal versions appearing on the black market he said.

It could lead to more diseases in addition to those that have been linked to THC vapes from the black market.

Critics also pointed out the irony of banning the sale of menthol vape flavors while allowing menthol cigarettes

Last year, the FDA proposed banning menthol in cigarettes, but it's unclear whether it will move forward. A spokesman made no comment.

But smoking advocates who also want the FDA to ban menthol cigarettes, said there is not enough reason to let menthol vape.

"The fact that the FDA has not banned menthol cigarettes should not be an excuse to leave menthol and mint e-cigarettes on the market, "said Vince Willmore, vice president of k re-communication for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Children.

"We need a comprehensive ban on all flavored taste e-cigarettes, including mint and menthol, because the evidence shows that these flavors are popular with youth, and if you leave some flavors on the market, kids will migrate to them," he added.

Azar acknowledged this week "love" e-cigarettes offer people trying to quit smoking, but he suggested that tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes could also be withdrawn if the children started using them.

"It's a some public health need for alternative nicotine devices to be available for adults to get rid of flammable tobacco, "Azar, sitting next to Trump, said in the Oval Office Wednesday.

" But with now 5 million children who regularly use e-cigarettes, we do not allow the benefits of adults from the expense of our children, "he added.