More than 75 percent of youth users smoke conventional cigarettes too

The percentage of U.S. middle and high school students who use electronic cigarettes, or e cigarettes, more than doubled from 2011 to 2012, according to data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The findings from the National Youth Tobacco Survey, in today s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, show that the percentage of high school students who reported ever using an e cigarette rose from 4.7 percent in 2011 to 10.0 percent in 2012. In the same time period, high school students using e cigarettes within the past 30 days rose from 1.5 percent to 2.8 percent. Use also doubled among middle school students. Altogether, in 2012 more than 1.78 million middle and high school students nationwide had tried e cigarettes.

“The increased use of e cigarettes by teens is deeply troubling,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H. “Nicotine is a highly addictive drug. Many teens who start with e cigarettes may be condemned to struggling with a lifelong addiction to nicotine and conventional cigarettes.”

The study also found that 76.3 percent of middle and high school students who used e cigarettes within the past 30 days also smoked conventional cigarettes in the same period. In addition, 1 in 5 middle school students who reported ever using e cigarettes say they have never tried conventional cigarettes. This raises concern that there may be young people for whom e cigarettes could be an entry point to use of conventional tobacco products, including cigarettes.

“About 90 percent of all smokers begin smoking as teenagers,” said Tim McAfee, M.D., M.P.H., director of the CDC Office on Smoking and Health. “We must keep our youth from experimenting or using any tobacco product. These dramatic increases suggest that developing strategies to prevent marketing, sales, and use of e cigarettes among youth is critical.”

Electronic cigarettes, or e cigarettes, are battery powered devices that provide doses of nicotine and other additives to the user in an aerosol. E cigarettes not marketed for therapeutic purposes are currently unregulated by the Food and Drug Administration. The FDA Center for Tobacco Products has announced that it intends to expand its jurisdiction over tobacco products to include e cigarettes, but has not yet issued regulatory rules. Because e cigarettes are largely unregulated, the agency does not have good information about them, such as the amounts and types of components and potentially harmful constituents.

“These data show a dramatic rise in usage of e cigarettes by youth, and this is cause for great concern as we don t yet understand the long term effects of these novel tobacco products,” said Mitch Zeller, director of FDA s Center for Tobacco Products. “These findings reinforce why the FDA intends to expand its authority over all tobacco products and establish a comprehensive and appropriate regulatory framework to reduce disease and death from tobacco use.”

Although some e cigarettes have been marketed as smoking cessation aids, there is no conclusive scientific evidence that e cigarettes promote successful long term quitting. However, there are proven cessation strategies and treatments, including counseling and FDA approved cessation medications.

Cigarette smoking remains the leading preventable cause of dis ease, dis ability, and death in the United States, responsible for an estimated 443,000 deaths each year. And for every one death, there are 20 people living with a smoking related disease. To quit smoking, free help is available at 1 800 QUIT NOW or

Under the Affordable Care Act, more Americans than ever will qualify to get health care coverage that fits their needs and budget, including important preventive services such as services to quit smoking that are covered with no additional costs. Get ready today for the new Health Insurance Marketplace. Visit or call 1 800 318 2596 (TTY/TDD 1 855 889 4325) to learn more. Open enrollment in the Marketplace begins October 1 for coverage starting as early as January 1, 2014.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health 101: e-cigarettes fall between cracks with bans

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  • Report Abuse Robert Copia April 03, 2014 3 45 pm As a long term smoker, I found it impossible to quit until three and a half years ago when I used my first e cig. I have not smoked a cigarette since and my health has improved drastically.
    The purchase of e cigs should be restricted to those under 18, and strict age verification should be used in retail and online sales as is used for the purchase of alcohol. All e cig material should be kept out of reach from children along with, drugs, cosmetics,, cleaning products, fluoride toothpaste etc. and other products that are harmful if ingested.. I would not even use the compact fluorescent light bulbs which contain MERCURY powder and gas and are very hazardous if shattered.
    Then let the politicians and other protectors of children deal with the more serious dangers to our children such as
    1. The Centers For Disease Control reports, 33% of 8th graders used alcohol in the last month .
    Institute of Health reports 23% of 12th graders used marijuana in the last 30 days and 6.5% use it daily.
    3. 60,000 children are in the Emergency Room each year because of accidental poisoning by prescription drugs.
    4. Autism effects 0ne in 58 children..
    Our leaders are too busy in their propaganda campaign of fear to dissuade hopelessly addicted smokers from trying an e cig which should really be called a personal nicotine vaporizer
    Pharma companies Glaxo and Pfizer sell quit smoking products, nicotine gum, lozenges patches inhalers, mind altering psychiatric drugs Chantix and Zyban etc, which they would like to sell you every day for as long as you live. These products have low rates of success. The mini lozenges look just like Tic Tacs and could be mistaken for candy. The Nicotrol vaporizer works similar to the ecig, you inhale liquid nicotine with the spray you shoot it up your nose.
    Zyban is actually the anti depressant, Wellbutrin with dangerous side effects. Chantix is the leader in adverse effect reporting to the FDA, suicide, violent behavior etc.
    In the last election cycle, 2010 2011, Pharma companies contributed TEN Million dollars to the politicians who are now doing there bidding to destroy the competition, BIG PHARMA verses little e cig.
    Bloomberg News, 2/19/2014 reports, Glaxo Memo Shows Drug Industry Lobbying On E Cigarettes .
    Forbes Magazine, 7/2/2012, The article, Dr. Drew Was Paid By Glaxo To Talk Up Antidepressants. includes link to the 72 page Justice Department complaint against Glaxo which involved the illegal, deceptive and fraudulent marketing of Antidepressants to children and adolescents, through their Doctors..
    New York Times 77/2/2012, GLAXO Agrees To Pay Three Billion Dollar Fraud Settlement ( and pleads guilty to criminal charges after a 10 year investigation led by whistle blowers
    Many of your leaders are working for the people that tried to harm your children. Please , think about it.
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