Ohio’s police chiefs have come out strong against vaping, stating, “It is clear that vaping is not a safe alternative to smoking.”
Bellefontaine Police Chief Brandon Standley is sharing the statement from the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police with hope of convincing Ohioans, particularly teens, to quit vaping.
“We,” the association writes, “ask that you join us in doing what you can to stop vaping before it takes more lives or causes more medical conditions.
“In a time when our state is still recuperating from the impact of the opioid epidemic, we don’t need another chemical of method introduced that can influence or youth to be tempted into making a bad decision that can have lasting consequences.”
The statement notes that Gov. Mike DeWine has asked lawmakers to ban the sale of flavored e-cigarette.
Also the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has begun action against some companies manufacturing the products and the Centers for Disease Control are investigating the causes of illness and death across the nation related to vaping products.
The legal age for purchasing tobacco products went from 18 to 21 on Oct. 17, the chiefs noted in the statement.
Ohio’s Department of Health have state that evidence suggest nicotine use during adolescence and young adulthood has long-term impacts on brain development and tobacco use remains the leading cause of preventable death in the nation.
According to a report from the Associated Press, new research shows U.S. teens who use electronic cigarettes prefer ones made by Juul Labs, and mint is the top flavor for many of them. That suggests a shift after Juul’s sweeter flavors were removed from retail stores.
The results are in two studies published online Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The studies include a U.S. government report based on a survey indicating that the U.S. teen vaping epidemic shows no signs of slowing down.
An estimated 28 percent of high school students and 11 percent of middle schoolers surveyed earlier this year had vaped within the past month. That amounts to over 5 million young users, versus about 3.6 million last year.
The results follow the Trump administration’s call in September to ban virtually all vaping flavors.
According to a 2015 report by the Institute of Medicine, raising the tobacco sales age from 18 to 21 will likely prevent or delay initiation of tobacco use by adolescents and young adults, particularly among youth 15 to 17 years old.