FDA bans JUUL Labs Inc. from selling vape products in US
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - JUUL's e-cigs are again in the headlines as Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an order today banning JUUL Labs Inc. from selling and distributing all of its products in the U.S.
JUUL Labs, a popular vaping company, has taken a lot of heat for many years for the teen vaping surge.
Although you have to be 21 to purchase these e-cigarettes, they can easily fall into the hands of many teens who health experts say become addicted to the flavor and nicotine.
There are several concerns regarding the vape product, but a local smoke shop worker, Alexa Horton, says she doesn't think the flavor is a factor.
“I don’t agree with the FDA saying that people start JUULing because of the smell of it," said Horton.
A Yuma local, Raymond Brown, says teens were never supposed to get their hands on tobacco, saying the ban is unfair to adults.
“It wasn’t for kids," said Brown. "It was only for adult smoking, what are adults gonna smoke?”
The ban comes after the FDA determined JUUL Labs did not provide “sufficient evidence” of what's inside each e-cigarette.
Horton says the FDA should prevent all companies from selling their vaping products, not just stop one from selling.
“I feel like if they’re gonna ban JUUL products as a whole, they should run with everything as else and not just come at one company because you do have a thousand other ones," said Horton.
According to the Truth Initiative, youth e-cigarette use rose 1,800% from 2011 to 2019.
They also conducted a study of middle and high school students showing that 43% of them who never vaped before tried it because the flavors were appealing.
JUUL Labs says it could potentially appeal the ban and take it to court.
The CDC says all JUUL e-cigarettes have a high level of nicotine, reporting that the manufacturer says a single JUUL pod contains as much nicotine as twenty regular cigarettes.
JUUL must stop selling these products immediately, but no word when they will be pulled from store shelves.
