Candy- and Fruit-Flavored Cigarettes Banned

Candy-and fruit-flavored cigarettes are now illegal, the Food and DrugAdministration (FDA) said this week. The ban is the first move by theFDA to enact the anti-tobacco initiatives outlined by the , signed by President Obamain June.

“Big Tobacco foryears has used candy- and fruit-flavorings in their cigarettes toattract and addict young smokers,” said John R. Seffrin, PhD,CEO of the American Cancer Society and the American Cancer SocietyCancer Action Network (ACS CAN). “The ban on cigaretteflavors that are blatantly intended to hook children is a criticalfirst step toward reversing that trend.”

Research shows that the youngeryou start smoking, the more likely you are to smoke as an adult. Almost90% of adult smokers started at or before the age 19. And people whostart smoking at younger ages are more likely to develop long-termnicotine addiction than people who start later in life.

Flavored cigarettes areespecially popular among kids and teens, in part because they are soldin enticing flavors such as chocolate, cherry, strawberry, and orange.Because of the flavorings, teens and kids often think these productsare safer than regular cigarettes.

"Flavored cigarettes attractand allure kids into lifetime addiction," said U.S. Department ofHealth and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Health Howard K. Koh,MD, MPH. "FDA's ban on these cigarettes will break that cycle for themore than 3,600 young people who start smoking daily."

The bill requires tobaccocompanies to stop making, shipping, and selling flavored cigarettes andrequires vendors to pull the products off their shelves.

The ban does not apply tomenthol cigarettes or other flavored tobacco products like cigars atthis time, but the FDA may rule on these areas in the future.

“The tobacco industryhas spent the last 50 years misleading smokers about the dangers oftobacco use and marketing to youth,” said Daniel E. Smith,president of ACS CAN. “The ban on candy- and fruit-flavoringsin cigarettes is only one aspect of this lifesaving new law that hasthe potential to break the deadly cycle of addiction and put an end toBig Tobacco’s targeting of our nation’schildren.”

The bill will also eventuallyrequire cigarette makers to disclose product ingredients to the FDA andprohibit them from using misleading labels such as "low tar" or "light"on cigarette packages. And it will hold tobacco companies to marketingrestrictions – for example, they will no longer be allowed toadvertise near schools or sponsor entertainment and sporting events.

For more information about thelegislation, see our story, Tolearn more about tobacco use among children and teens, see this. To find out what your lawmakers are doing to lessen theimpact of tobacco in your community, visit the .

Reviewed by:Members of the ACS News Center stories are provided as a source of cancer-related news and are not intended to be used as .


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