State needs to regulate e-cigarettes
Considerable dangers don’t concern federal government, so NM must protect public health
The recent Albuquerque Journal article regarding the e-cigarette explosion is a warning of the epidemic use of e-cigarettes among teenagers and young adults.
According to the National Use Survey, the U.S. has seen a 900 percent increase in the use of e-cigarettes from 2000-2015. More than 80 percent of those surveyed said they tried e-cigarettes because of the flavors like bubble gum, cotton candy and other enticing names.
The December 2016 surgeon general report noted that e-cigarettes represent the most commonly used form of tobacco by teens and young adults. The American Heart Association, the FDA and the American Lung Association all sound the alarm about the dangers of these devices that electrically heat tobacco-derived nicotine into vapor that is then inhaled.
Nicotine is highly addictive and poses a particularly dangerous effect on the adolescent and young adult brain. The brain continues to develop at least until age 25. The surgeon general report notes research showing nicotine causes behavioral changes as a consequence of exposure to nicotine including impaired impulse control, attention, cognition as well as the production of mood disorders.
Nicotine acts like a cancer on the arteries and is a major factor in development of coronary artery disease.
The vapor itself is problematic. Given there are more than 500 brands of e-cigarettes, it is not surprising that the vapor has cancer causing ingredients. The most recent report found that the flavorings are more carcinogenic than the traditional e-cigarette. People around “vapors” are exposed to both the nicotine and the other products of the heated materials.
In 2016, the FDA required that all manufacturers producing e-cigarettes since 2007 reveal the ingredients of their products and do premarket review before they are allowed on the market. The Republican House committee overseeing the FDA voted in 2016 to prevent this from happening. Thus, these products are likely to be unregulated and treated just like nutritional supplements, never needing to show that they are safe.
E-cigarettes have not been proven to be safe. They have not been shown to be effective in helping people quit smoking. They have the potential for enormous toxicity, and the federal government seems uninterested in regulating them. We in New Mexico should be.
The Legislature should initiate three measures immediately: Raise the age for purchase of these cigarettes to 21; tax them like cigarettes; and engage a sophisticated public health education program similar to what has been done effectively with tobacco to explain the dangers of these devices, particularly to pregnant women.
Let us lead the nation in one important health area, protecting our children from the harms of e-cigarettes and keeping the purveyors of iatrogenic disease and death fool us into thinking e-cigarettes are safe.