America!
You all might have heard about the FDA’s mission to reduce tobacco use throughout our Country, right? They want to heavily regulate flavored e-juice to limit flavor availability or perhaps ban it all together. Well, VGOD wants to help spread the word right now because the clock is ticking. We did a little bit of research for you, so we can get the facts straight and act before it’s too late. Okay, so Scott Gottlieb is the 23rd Commissioner of the FDA and was just sworn in last year. His mission is as he stated in a Tweet on February 15th, 2018:
“Protecting future generations from all nicotine containing products remains a top priority. #FDA’s efforts seek to restrict youth access, limit youth appeal. We’ve also expanded public education efforts to include messaging re: dangers of youth use of e-cigarettes” [1]
You see the children are the main concern here, as far as prevention goes. That is why the FDA is addressing the role that flavors play in attracting minors to flavored e-juice or cigarettes. Children like sweet flavors, but so do adults. Yes, adults enjoy sweet flavors too. Clearly, right? It is simply absurd to presume that adults wouldn’t also enjoy flavorful foods. Widespread diabetes and obesity wouldn’t be so prevalent in our society if this were so. Why doesn’t the FDA limit flavors or ban them all together when it comes to the candy or ice-cream industry? Imagine regulating sugar?. After all, don’t those industries directly target children in their advertising? Are they not directly helping to establish an unhealthy addiction to sugar for generations to come? Diabetes costs our medical industry an astonishing 190.2 billion dollars a year and is estimated to cost a whopping 549.5 billion over the next two decades. [2]
Harm reduction is the key factor that should be focused upon. If flavors in e-juice are helping distract people from wanting to have a cigarette, which enables them to successfully quit for the long term, we are winning, are we not? It’s all about harm reduction and freedom of choice as an adult consumer. This is certainly not about targeting children or getting them hooked. America still spends less yearly on medical costs from smoking than on diabetes at an estimated 170 billion. [3] Ultimately, this cost will continue to decline when more and more smokers continue to make the switch from cigarettes to e-cigarettes and eventually, in a lot of cases, quit all together.
We don’t believe that Gottlieb is in full favor of a complete flavor ban, but it still could happen. Gottlieb does appear to be somewhat in favor of adults using vaping as a helpful transition from smoking as he stated in his official Press Release on March 20th.
“I’ve talked to ex-smokers, who’ve told me that they quit cigarettes altogether and that they now vape. And they’ve also told me it was the flavors that helped them make that transition off combustible cigarettes. Now I know anecdotes aren’t the same as data. And the ANPRM specifically seeks data on this issue. But these personal stories are important to me as we shape our overall approach to smoking cessation. And it’s important to me that we uphold the FDA’s responsibility to consider all sides and take into account, among other things, the risks and benefits to the population as a whole.” [4]
So, here’s what we gotta do right now! We have to explain the rationale behind flavors to the FDA! This will help the future of the Vaping Industry tremendously! We need variety of flavors in e-juices, we want to help people change their lives and stop smoking cigarettes. Everyone has to go to the Federal Register and submit a formal comment. Tell them your story, give them your opinions, make truthful statements in the most respectful way possible. Rally your friends and family all over America to do this too, even if they’re not vapers, but have experienced a loved one making the transition from smoking cigarettes to vaping. Every comment counts about how vaping is helping real, everyday lives and is extremely important because you know why? All the anti-vaping folks can also comment and you know they’re rallying all their people to do the same. We need to unify too, as a community and help as much as we can. And, yes, flavored e-juice isn’t just going to go away tomorrow, but we still need to do something today, so that years down the road we can still enjoy vaping, if we choose to. And, to know that we took action for a better future in an America that still believes in freedom of choice for its’ Citizens. Go to the Federal Register and submit a formal comment today!
Spread the word, America! Post and re-post the link to the Federal Register everywhere you can! Try to get as many people as you can to write to the FDA before midnight Eastern time at the end of June 19th. Make your opinion matter and do your part today!
Notes
[1] https://twitter.com/sgottliebfda/status/964237317618720768?lang=en
[2] http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/learn-the-facts/economic-costs-of-obesity/
[3] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-healthcare-costs-smoking-idUSKBN0JX2BE20141219
