WSJ Draws Much-Needed Attention to E-Cigarettes

By CASAColumbia

CASAColumbia applauds The Wall Street Journal for calling attention to the growing commercial interest in e-cigarettes in its June 9, 2013 article “E-Cigarettes Fire Up Investors, Regulators.” The article focuses on the expanding group of e-cigarette investors and the lack of product regulation.

It’s no secret that electronic cigarettes–also known as e-cigarettes–which deliver nicotine, are just another vehicle to addiction. Currently, e-cigarettes are not regulated like traditional cigarettes, but they ought to be because:

• E-cigarettes are designed to look like cigarettes and are often flavored in ways that appeal directly to children and adolescents with flavors that include candy and menthol. They may be used as a bridge to other nicotine products, including conventional cigarettes, and to other addictive drugs
• More than 95% of addiction cases involving nicotine start with substance use before age 21. High school students who have ever smoked cigarettes are 9 times likelier to develop addiction involving alcohol or other drugs than those who have never smoked
• Although e-cigarettes are marketed as less harmful than cigarettes, they have not been proven to be a safe and effective alternative. Other than addiction involving nicotine, the other health consequences of these products are largely unknown.

For more information on CASAColumbia’s stance on e-cigarettes, please see our positioning statement.