FDA ignores current science to give Juul a pass

Not surprisingly, on July 17, 2025, FDA authorized the sale of Juul tobacco and menthol e-cigarettes.  I wish I could say that I am “not surprised” because during the 2024 campaign President Trump announced that he would “save vaping,” but, on reading FDA’s scientific justification (the Technical Product Lead report [TPL]), I found that theContinue reading “FDA ignores current science to give Juul a pass”

New WHO report details progress and problems in global tobacco control

In June 2025 the WHO released its new comprehensive WHO report on the global tobacco epidemic, 2025: Warning about the dangers of tobacco. The report contains detailed country-specific analysis and statistics about progress in reducing tobacco use, policies, and industry opposition. It is a valuable reference document. It recognizes that Overall, while progress since 2007Continue reading “New WHO report details progress and problems in global tobacco control”

Disposable ecigs expose users to much higher levels of toxic metals than earlier generations of ecigs or cigarettes

Mark Salazar, and his colleagues at UC Davis new paper “Elevated Toxic Element Emissions from Popular Disposable E‑Cigarettes: Sources, Life Cycle, and Health Risks” provides a comprehensive analysis that shows that how popular disposable e-cigarettes (Esco Bar, Flum Pebble, and ELF Bar) expose users to levels of toxic metals that are orders of magnitude higherContinue reading “Disposable ecigs expose users to much higher levels of toxic metals than earlier generations of ecigs or cigarettes”

E-cigarette use during pregnancy increases risk for material and newborn problems

At a time when England is still encouraging pregnant women who smoke to switch to e-cigarettes, the evidence that e-cigarettes complicate pregnancy continues to grow. The recent meta-analysis “Associations between vaping during pregnancy and perinatal outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis” pooled the results of 25 studies published as of July 2024 and found aboutContinue reading “E-cigarette use during pregnancy increases risk for material and newborn problems”

18 Senators write HHS leaders asking for details on cuts to tobacco programs and specific plans to meet legal obligations

On April 22, 2025, 18 Democratic senators wrote HHS Secretary Kennedy and the leaders of the FDA and CDC expressing concern about Trump Administration decisions to decapitate and cut the FDA Center for Tobacco Products and shut down the CDC Office on Smoking and Health, actions that will cost billions in health costs by nextContinue reading “18 Senators write HHS leaders asking for details on cuts to tobacco programs and specific plans to meet legal obligations”

Trump gives Big Tobacco a big gift: He killed the National Youth Tobacco Survey, blinding public, researchers, and policy makers to the effects of changing tobacco industry products and practices

The now-shuttered CDC Office on Smoking and Health (OSH) has conducted the National Youth Tobacco Survey since 1999.  The survey provides important surveillance about how youth tobacco use is changing.  After Congress created the FDA Center for Tobacco Products, it partnered with CDC to expand the scope and depth of the survey, including increasing detailsContinue reading “Trump gives Big Tobacco a big gift: He killed the National Youth Tobacco Survey, blinding public, researchers, and policy makers to the effects of changing tobacco industry products and practices”

Shuttering CDC and FDA tobacco offices will increase the deficit by billions of dollars (right away)

Trump shuttering the CDC Office on Smoking and Heath and decapitating the FDA Center for Tobacco Products will not only increase tobacco-caused disease but will also make the federal budget deficit worse (and cost American people and businesses a lot of money in avoidable medical costs). The only winners will be the big tobacco companiesContinue reading “Shuttering CDC and FDA tobacco offices will increase the deficit by billions of dollars (right away)”

Trump removes Brian King as Director and guts FDA Center for Tobacco Products

As part of its campaign to wreck the federal government, Brian King, head of the FDA Center for Tobacco Products, has been put on administrative leave. He has been reportedly offered a job with a regional office of the Indian Health Service that includes Alaska. (According to the New York Times, “Some senior leaders basedContinue reading “Trump removes Brian King as Director and guts FDA Center for Tobacco Products”

“Hard core” smokers are melting away in response to established tobacco control policies

The whole argument for promoting e-cigarettes, heated tobacco and other “potentially reduced risk” tobacco products is built on the assumption that there is a “hard-core” of smokers who “cannot or will not quit” using established smoking cessation therapies or in response to population level tobacco control interventions (e.g., clean indoor air laws, media campaigns, orContinue reading ““Hard core” smokers are melting away in response to established tobacco control policies”

Three year study finds that fourth-generation e-cigarettes like Juul associated with continued smoking and vaping

Most studies of the association between e-cigarette use and smoking and nicotine cessation have been conducted with the earlier generation e-cigarettes, which do not deliver nicotine as effectively as the fourth generation e-cigarettes pioneered by Juul. (These e-cigarettes use protonated nicotine [also called nicotine salts] to increase nicotine delivery to the user.) Our meta-analysis ofContinue reading “Three year study finds that fourth-generation e-cigarettes like Juul associated with continued smoking and vaping”