Flavored Cig Ban Is Silly: Kids Don't Smoke Them

FDA measure aimed at curbing 'gateway' brands that get teens hooked

(AP) - The new federal ban on flavored cigarettes took effect today, marking one of the first visible signs of the Food and Drug Administration's new authority to regulate tobacco. The ban on manufacturing, importing, marketing and distribution includes candy-, fruit- and clove-flavored cigarettes, which health authorities say are more appealing to youth. It does not include a ban on menthol or other flavored tobacco products—issues the FDA is studying. More»

But just as tobacco products, not 'drug-delivery devices'

(NEWSER) - The FDA is getting in on the e-cigarette action, announcing today that it will regulate the smokeless smokes the same way it does other tobacco products. That's actually good news for e-cig purveyors, reports the AP, as they bypass tougher regulations they would have faced if labeled a drug-delivery device. That could all change, the FDA says, if the e-cigarettes are "marketed for therapeutic purposes"—ie, smoking cessation. More»

Court decides electronic smokes should be treated like tobacco

(NEWSER) - The Food and Drug Administration's attempt to crack down on "electronic cigarettes" has been defeated in court. A federal appeals court ruled that the products, which create a nicotine vapor instead of smoke, should be treated like tobacco products—not like nicotine-placement gum or patches, which would place them under tighter regulation. The decision means that while the FDA can regulate the marketing of e-cigarettes, it hasn't got the power to restrict sales or block imports, reports the Los Angeles Times . More»

FDA, importer disagree over definition of a cigarette

(NEWSER) - For one California importer of smokes, an awful lot has come to rest on the precise definition of a cigar. After a ban on clove cigarettes went into effect last month, Kretek International slyly began importing Djarum-brand clove “small cigars." They're quite similar to Djarum’s clove cigarettes, though they come in a box of 12—not 20—and are labeled as cigars. The FDA has warned against such steps to sidestep the ban. More»

(AP) - President Barack Obama cited his own long struggle to quit the cigarettes he took up as a teenager as he signed the strongest-ever US anti-smoking bill today and praised it for providing needed protections for future generations. "It is a law that will save American lives," Obama said. "The decades-long effort to protect our children from the harmful effects of smoking has finally emerged victorious." More»