Schumer Calls for FDA Ban on Candy-Flavor E-Cigarettes

E-cigarette manufacturers are targeting kids with "bubble gum" and "gummy bear" flavors, New York's senior U.S. senator asserted Sunday while urging the Food and Drug Administration to crack down on such "cynical marketing ploys."

Sen. Chuck Schumer urged the FDA to ban e-cigarette flavors designed to attract miinors. He also recommends that e-cigarette advertising aimed at school children be prohibited

"The FDA needs to be the adult in the room and put an end to these cynical marketing ploys," Schumer said at a news conference.

E-cigarette use among middle and high school students has tripled from 2013 to 2014, Schumer said, citing a report released last week by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC report stated that as many as 2 million high school students used e-cigarettes last year.

E-cigarettes are battery-operated devices designed to resemble tobacco cigarettes, but contain no tobacco. The devices heat a flavored liquid containing nicotine and converts it into a vapor that the user inhales.

"The only reason these companies are marketing flavors like gummy bear and cherry crush is to lure kids in and then addict them to nicotine," Schumer said.

E-cigarrette manufacturers have strongly denied that their products and marketing are aimed at children.

The FDA issued a proposed rule last year to regulate e-cigarettes, but the rule hasn't been finalized. 

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