In recent months, the U.S. Surgeon General Vice Adm. Jerome M. Adams, M.D. issued an advisory stressing the importance of protecting children from a lifetime of nicotine addiction and associated health risks by immediately addressing the epidemic of youth e-cigarette use.

E-cigarette use among youth has skyrocketed in the past years at a rate of epidemic proportions. In fact, both Adams and FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D. have referred to the use of e-cigarettes as an epidemic.

Data from National Institutes of Health’s Monitoring the Future survey shows that since 2014 e-cigarettes have been the most commonly used tobacco product among U.S. youth. E-cigarette use among U.S. middle and high school students increased 900 percent during 2011-2015, before declining for the first time during 2015-2017.

However, current e-cigarette use increased 78 percent among high school students during the past year, from 11.7 percent in 2017 to 20.8 percent in 2018. 4 In 2018. More than 3.6 million U.S. youth, including 1 in 5 high school students and 1 in 20 middle school students, currently use e-cigarettes. E-cigarette aerosol is not harmless. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine – the addictive drug in regular cigarettes, cigars, and other tobacco products.

Nicotine exposure during adolescence can harm the developing brain – which continues to develop until about age 25. Nicotine exposure during adolescence can impact learning, memory, and attention. Using nicotine in adolescence can also increase risk for future addiction to other drugs.

In addition to nicotine, the aerosol that users inhale and exhale from e-cigarettes can potentially expose both themselves and bystanders to other harmful substances, including heavy metals, volatile organic compounds, and ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deeply into the lungs. Many e-cigarettes also come in kid-friendly flavors. In addition to making e-cigarettes more appealing to young people, some of the chemicals used to make certain flavors may also have health risks. E-cigarettes can also be used to deliver other drugs, including marijuana. In 2016, one-third of U.S. middle and high school students who ever used e-cigarettes had used marijuana in e-cigarettes.

“We need to protect our kids from all tobacco products, including all shapes and sizes of e-cigarettes,” said Adams. “Everyone can play an important role in protecting our nation’s young people from the risks of e-cigarettes.”

The surge in e-cigarette use among our nation’s youth has been fueled by newer cartridge-based devices that have become increasingly popular. Many of these e-cigarettes look like a USB flash drive, making them easy to conceal. The most commonly sold version is JUUL, which now has more than a 70 percent share of the e-cigarette market in the United States. A typical JUUL cartridge, or “pod,” contains about as much nicotine as a pack of 20 regular cigarettes.

“In the data sets we use, we have never seen use of any substance by America’s young people rise as rapidly as e-cigarette use is rising,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. “Combustible cigarettes remain the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, and providing an effective off-ramp for adults who want to quit using them is a public health priority. But we cannot allow e-cigarettes to become an on-ramp to nicotine addiction for younger Americans. HHS has been and will continue developing a comprehensive, balanced policy approach to this challenge.”

As noted in the 2016 Surgeon General’s report on E-cigarette Use among Youth and Young Adults, e-cigarette use poses a significant – and avoidable – health risk to young people. Besides increasing the possibility of addiction and long-term harm to brain development and respiratory health, e-cigarette use may also lead to the use of regular cigarettes that can do even more damage to the body.

“We have evidence-based strategies to prevent tobacco use that can be applied to e-cigarettes.” said Adams. “We must take action now to protect the health of our nation’s young people.”

In conjunction with this advisory was a call to action earlier announced by FDA Commissioner Gottlieb for the FDA’s Youth Tobacco Prevention Plan—a key component of the agency’s Comprehensive Plan for Tobacco and Nicotine Regulation. The youth plan includes a series of actions to stop youth use of tobacco products, especially e-cigarettes, with special focus on three key areas: preventing youth access to tobacco products, curbing marketing of tobacco products aimed at youth, and educating teens about the dangers of using any tobacco product, including e-cigarettes, as well as educating retailers about their key role in protecting youth

Adams advised parents to set a good example by being tobacco-free. If you use tobacco products, it’s never too late to quit. Talk to a healthcare professional about quitting all forms of tobacco product use. For free help, visit www.quitlinenc.com or call 1-800-QUIT-NOW. For more information, please contact Ernest Watts, Region 8 Tobacco Lead, at [email protected] or call 910-334-1488.

This article and others are brought to you monthly by the partners with Sampson County Healthy Carolinians. This organization is committed to address major health and social issues within the county. Their on-going efforts are to provide prevention, education and awareness of the available resources that can assist families with their overall health and wellness. For more information about Sampson County Partners for Healthy Carolinians, visit www.scpfhc.org.

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By Ernest Watts

SC Healthy Carolinians

Ernest Watts is the Region 8 Tobacco Lead for the Sampson County Partners for Healthy Carolinians.