Posted on 12/16/2011 1:40:25 PM PST by mdittmar
[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) in sending a letter to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) asking it to ban flavored cigars.
“Cigars with candy-like flavorings such as strawberry, watermelon, vanilla and chocolate attract kids to smoking and help hook them on this addictive habit,” the Senators wrote. “Congress helped protect young people from the harmful effects of tobacco by banning flavored cigarettes. But as youth cigarette use has fallen, cigars have become more popular among adolescents. We urge FDA to immediately close the current regulatory loopholes and prohibit flavored cigars in the interest of public health.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, of the 13 million Americans who smoke cigars, an estimated 1.8 million are high school students and 475,000 are middle school students. This ban would help decrease the staggering rate of cigar use by children and young adults by removing these harmful products from the marketplace.
The Senators’ letter is available here, and the text is below:
December 15, 2011
The Honorable Margaret Hamburg
Commissioner
Food and Drug Administration
10903 New Hampshire Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20993
Dear Commissioner Hamburg:
We write to urge the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue regulations prohibiting the use of flavorings in cigars. As teenagers turn to cigars instead of cigarettes, these products pose a serious threat to public health and threaten to undermine the important public health protections of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act.
Flavored cigars are putting children’s health at risk and increasing nicotine addiction and tobacco use among young people. More than 13 million Americans smoke cigars, including an estimated 1.8 million high school students and 475,000 middle school students. Cigars contain the same toxic and cancer-causing chemicals contained in cigarettes, and public health experts have warned that cigars are not safe alternatives to cigarettes. Cigar smoking is linked to numerous cancers including cancers of the lung, mouth,throat, and esophagus. Cigars with candy-like flavorings such as strawberry, watermelon, vanilla and chocolate attract kids to smoking and help hook them on this addictive habit.
Congress helped protect young people from the harmful effects of tobacco by banning flavored cigarettes. But as youth cigarette use has fallen, cigars have become more popular among adolescents. In some states, cigar use surpasses cigarette use among high school males.
The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act of 2009 gives FDA the authority to regulate tobacco products and their flavorings, but FDA has not asserted its authority over cigars. On July 7th, the Department of Health and Human Services indicated in its semiannual regulatory agenda that FDA intended to issue this regulation in October of this year. Since FDA missed its October deadline, an estimated 2 billion cigars, cigarillos, and little cigars have been sold without appropriate regulation.
We urge FDA to immediately close the current regulatory loopholes and prohibit flavored cigars in the interest of public health.
Are you implying that the Senators could be.....racist?
Justa little FYI or if you will, a FWIW ....
People ( myself included ) have switched from smoking cigarettes to smoking “little cigars”.
They come in a pack of 20 for less than 2 bucks a pack and come in all sorts of flavors from mild, menthol, full flavor, grape, peach, vanilla and cherry.
I know a *** lot *** of people who are smoking these “little cigars” and that is exactly what they’re called.
The reason they’re under 2 bucks a pack ( of 20 )is that the tobacco is a longer cut or aka pipe tobacco.
If you didnt know any better, you’d think they’re a pack of some unknown or generic cigarette until you read the pack.
Democrats are not so much elected by the American people as they are inflicted upon them.
Nanny State PING!
oh man
The first question to ask is, why do they now have it in for Bill Clinton?
As is proven by scientific research, Flavored Cigars are a special danger to Minorities, Single Mothers, Children, and are targeted directly at the LGBTG community. They also can cause cancer among Native Americans. It is a tragedy fully worthy of a Ken Burns Video and Digitally Enhanced Slide Show.
But then again, these at-risk groups are also in special danger of complete annihilation by Global Warming (as if the Republicans cared). Perhaps it might make Public Health sense to actually distribute Flavored Cigars (and tasty, fatty fast food) amongst them to try and make their last moments more pleasant.
If my Stimulus Fund Grant comes through, I shall report on this theory to you.
Have these morons smoked a cigar? they really think little Johnny will do that twice because the thing had strawberry flavoring? And are these morons not aware that people under 18 can’t buy cigars anywhere in the USA?
What’s next? Taking the yummy flavors out of candy and gum?
It’s a becoming a bland,bland world.
Dear Leader would be pleased.
I like those little cigars with vanilla flavor.
What a sweet smoke they are!
smoking “little cigars”...
-
Cheyenne?
Kind of like them....
Something different anyway....
Cheyenne, RedBucks and Westforts. The westforts took the place of the 1839’s at my little gas station. And I like em better than the 1839’s ~!
There was one brand called Noble that I was getting for 80 cents a pack but they went out of business earlier this year. WAHHHH.
Perhaps......but the observation probably makes me one, as well.
I guess that would explain all the kids I see smoking cigars....oh, wait.....
“Democrats just love this stuff. They think the government is smarter than the rest of us, and needs to protect us. It’s absolutely frightening to realize how these people think.”
And by making you privy to that way of thinking, he is openly admitting to you that he is stupid or lazy or most likely both. If he actually believes that the government is smarter than he is and should run his life, then he is admitting that he is dumber than anyone who is smart enough to manage their own lives.
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