|
|
 |
|
The
views expressed
on this page are soley those of the author and do not
necessarily
represent the views of County News Online
|
 |
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown
Protecting Ohio
Children from Liquid Nicotine and E-Cigarettes
Act would regulate childproof packaging on liquid nicotine
The tobacco industry, in an effort to replace the 480,000 customers it
loses each year to smoking-related deaths, has turned to electronic
cigarettes, a new nicotine product that it hopes to make appealing to
young people. These so-called e-cigarettes are battery-operated devices
that simulate traditional tobacco products and contain cartridges
filled with highly-toxic liquid nicotine, which is then vaporized and
inhaled.
These companies try to draw children and young people to e-cigarettes
with brightly colored packaging and flavorings, like Gummy Bears and
Tutti Frutti. So far, it’s working. According to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), e-cigarette use has doubled among
middle and high school students since 2012. Not only are these products
addicting, but just a teaspoon of liquid nicotine – either ingested or
absorbed through the skin – could kill a small child.
Since 2012, the number of accidental poisonings linked to these
e-liquids has increased 300 percent. And yet, liquid nicotine
containers aren’t required to have childproof packaging.
If we childproof bleach, mouthwash, and aspirin, we should childproof
toxic liquid nicotine.
That’s why I’m cosponsoring the Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act
of 2014. The bill would direct the U.S. Consumer Product Safety
Commission to issue rules requiring safer, child-resistant packaging
for any liquid nicotine sold to consumers, to protect children from
accidental poisoning.
Very young children aren’t the only ones at risk. E-cigarette companies
are using the same tactics to target young people that have already
been banned for traditional tobacco companies. According to research
published by the American Academy of Pediatrics, between 2011 and 2013,
the number of teenagers exposed to e-cigarette marketing increased by
256 percent.
In a letter to the Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA), I joined with 12 other members of Congress in urging the agency
to take immediate action against e-cigarette companies’ predatory
efforts to market their products to young people. We asked the FDA to
ban e-cigarette companies from marketing to children, prohibit the use
of liquid nicotine flavorings, and end online sales which allow minors
to purchase e-cigarette products without undergoing reliable age
verification.
The Child Nicotine Poisoning Prevention Act and new regulations by the
FDA are an important step in the fighting the harmful effects of
e-cigarettes. Our children deserve protection from dangerous products
like liquid nicotine.
Sincerely,
Sherrod Brown
U.S. Senator
|
|
|
|
