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Surgeon General Says Teen E-Cigarette Use is an Epidemic

December 19, 2018

“I am officially declaring e-cigarette use among youth an epidemic in the United States."

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams said this earlier this week when announcing a national advisory regarding the skyrocketing use of e-cigarettes by teens.

In the last year alone, teen use of e-cigarettes has increased by 78 percent.

The Surgeon General’s advisory calls on parents, teachers and health professionals to work together to curb this increase by educating themselves about e-cigarettes, talking to teens about the dangers of using them, and adopting new strategies to discourage their use.

The Surgeon General’s advisory is an important step to start addressing the epidemic.

But, the only way to fully reverse this troubling trend is for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to regulate e-cigarettes and prohibit the use of flavors that attract teens.

“ACS CAN will continue to call for FDA to move as quickly as possible to regulate all tobacco products and reverse the unprecedented trend of youth use of e-cigarettes,” said ACS CAN President Chris Hansen.