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Smoking tobacco cigarettes have always been a bane for many smokers on a mission to lead a healthier lifestyle. It’s an addiction that is hard to let go yet is oddly available in all markets, despite how nearly 500,000 people suffer from diseases or die due to tobacco-related issues in the US alone each year.

E-cigarettes are on the rise and market itself as a healthier alternative to smoking, wherein the vaping community views it as a relatively safer option. While it isn’t necessarily the solution, the chemicals are free from toxic substances you would get from traditional cigarettes, making it the lesser evil that can help smokers in their journey to quit.

What are the Regulations of Electronic Smoking Devices Under the FDA?

Despite the skyrocketing popularity of vape devices, it is still in the grey area in the eyes of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the UK. The Tobacco Control Act of 2009 allowed the manufacture, distribution, and marketing of tobacco products. Still, the Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) has extended the rule to include electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) like vaping Juuling, or e-cigarettes.

Considering the risk and benefits it provides to the population, reaching a solid conclusion is tricky as the health hazards of ENDS are still cloudy. The lack of further research puts vaping between combustible tobacco products and prescription nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), which is why there are still no robust regulations involving ENDS.

What is the Potential of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) to the FDA?

Seeing as ENDS, or vaping, provides smokers the opportunity to indulge in substances like nicotine and cannabis in a consistent, quantifiable dose, there is a chance to produce the desirable effects minus the ramifications of its adverse side-effects like an addiction.

The possibility of ENDS being an alternative and safer delivery system than combustibles like tobacco cigarettes is increasing, but it still needs more proof.

Restricting Youth Access to Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS)

As of Aug. 9, 2016, the FDA enforced a law that rightfully limits the selling of e-cigarettes and other vape devices to people older than 18-years-old. This means that anyone younger than the legal age is not allowed to smoke or buy any form of ENDS, while buyers need to present IDs that verify their age when purchasing a tobacco product as proof they are not minors.

In Conclusion: Regulating Vaping as an Ethical Alternative to Traditional Tobacco Cigarettes is an Ongoing Process

More research and submission of the health documents regarding e-cigarettes, including labelling and advertisements, are all necessary for the FDA’s efforts to study the effects of the product.

Learning more about ENDS can contribute to their decision on developing appropriate regulations regarding the manufacturing, selling, and marketing of ENDS, allowing smokers to have a legal and ethical alternative to smoking tobacco cigarettes.

If you’re looking to learn more about vape tips and news in the UK, get in touch with us to see how we can help.