About this time last year, tobacco companies in the United States were required to spend “money on TV ads again — not to sell cigarettes, but to warn against them…
“The campaign is the culmination of an 18-year legal battle in which the federal government sought to recover billions of dollars in health care related to tobacco-caused illnesses. After lengthy litigation, the court-mandated remedy is anti-smoking ads that will begin running in newspapers… and on TV… for a year.”
A complicating item in the tobacco marketplace is the growth of e-cigarettes. They are less deadly than regular cigarettes, and therefore perhaps a legitimate alternative to smoking for extant smokers. Conversely, e-cigarettes and youth don’t mix.
The Centers for Disease Control declares:
*The use of e-cigarettes is unsafe for kids, teens, and young adults.
*Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine. Nicotine is highly addictive and can harm adolescent brain development, which continues into the early to mid-20s.
*E-cigarettes can contain other harmful substances besides nicotine.
*Young people who use e-cigarettes may be more likely to smoke cigarettes in the future.
Arguably, the e-cigarette manufacturers have been targeting the young adult with their “fun” flavors
I had a friend, Donna, who was often trying to quit smoking cigarettes, mostly because she knew how much I hated them. She developed brain cancer about a decade and a half ago. Figuring it didn’t matter, she resumed smoking yet again. I’m convinced those latter cigarettes even more agonizing right before she died.
Today is the Great American Smokeout, “an annual event sponsored by the American Cancer Society (ACS)… This social engineering event focuses on encouraging Americans to quit tobacco smoking. People are challenged to stop smoking for at least 24 hours assuming that their decision not to smoke will last longer, hopefully forever. Today, more than 43 million people in the United States smoke cigarettes, that is about 1 in 5 adults.”
Here are 15+ Of The Most Powerful Anti-Smoking Ads Ever Created, CDC’s anti-smoking ad campaign, and Powerful Anti Smoking Ads That Will Make You Quit. (Oh that it were so easy!)
I’ve seen this one a lot: CDC: Tips From Former Smokers – Terrie’s Tip Ad
I was behind a younger-type person at the convenience store the other day, and she bought a pack of Juul things for … 18 DOLLARS! Holy cow, those things are expensive. I mean, cigarettes themselves are expensive, but the e-cigarettes are ridiculous. I never understood the allure of cigarettes, mostly because of the expense. You don’t get anything positive from them, and they cost a chunk of money. I believe people spending money on cocaine or heroin more than on cigarettes, because at least you alter your mood with those. And if e-cigarettes are that spendy, I can’t imagine plunking down cash for them!
And now this:
BREAKING NEWS
The F.D.A. won’t ban flavored e-cigarettes after all. But it is taking a bold step toward outlawing menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars.
Thursday, November 15, 2018 10:17 AM EST
Stopping short of its threatened ban on flavored e-cigarettes, the Food and Drug Administration said it would allow stores to continue selling the products, but only from closed-off areas that are inaccessible to minors.
Read More » https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/15/health/ecigarettes-fda-flavors-ban.html
Cigarettes used to be pretty cheap. When I bought them for my father as a kid, it was maybe 35 cents, which is less than $3 today. So the price now, over $10, has grown thrice or more what inflation would suggest.