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News Tip: New FDA Proposal on Limiting E-Cigarette Flavors May Be Too Little, Too Late, Expert Says

Samiha Khanna

Outgoing FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb proposed new restrictions on sales of flavored e-cigarettes Wednesday.

  • Quotes: 
    "When the new administration came in, the FDA postponed until 2022 its plans to conduct safety reviews of products such as e-cigarettes before they went to market. In a sense, it is the government’s inaction that has led to this epidemic, the massive increase in e-cigarette use by teenagers and young adults,” says Sven-Eric Jordt, Ph.D., an associate professor of anesthesiology, pharmacology, and cancer biology at Duke University.

    “The new FDA proposal suggests they’re trying to extinguish this fire, and the question now is, is that really possible? Even if they begin premarket reviews of these products in 2021, as proposed, there still would be products that are grandfathered in under old regulations and would not be affected.”

    “This new proposal would limit the e-cigarette flavors that can be sold over the counter at convenience stores and gas stations to menthol, mint and tobacco, and not these sweet, candy flavors such as creme brûlée and mango that we have seen appeal to young users.”

    “But what we might also see is a surge in after-market and counterfeit products that people can order online from small manufacturers, many of whom stole designs from companies such as Juul and are making millions of dollars on counterfeit products that even a young person could order on a website such as eBay or Alibaba. It may be difficult for FDA to control that. With a market so big and with millions of new nicotine-addicted users, it’s really difficult to put the genie back in the bottle.”

    “Curtailing sales of small flavored cigars is an urgent priority, since their marketing specifically targets minority communities, such as African-Americans, and they are more toxic than other tobacco products.”
     

  • Bio: Sven-Eric Jordt, Ph.D., an associate professor of anesthesiology, pharmacology, and cancer biology at Duke University, studies the mechanisms involved in the sensations of touch, pain and irritation. Some of his research focuses on how menthol-flavored tobacco products can make inhaling cigarette smoke more comfortable increase nicotine uptake, and how chemical flavors in e-cigarettes, such as cinnamon and citrus, can create harmful compounds that cause lung irritation.
     
  • Archive Interviews --
         -- Duke Health Video: Adding Flavors to E-Cigarette Liquids Changes Chemistry, Creates Irritants

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Media Contact:
Samiha Khanna
(919) 419-5069; Samiha.Khanna@duke.edu