The GeneEd Training Report Blog

Earlier this week, President Obama signed a bill granting the FDA regulatory control over tobacco products. In the terms of the new ruling, the FDA has the legal ability to control what types of tobacco products are sold and how these products are marketed. The law does not however allow the FDA to ban the sales of tobacco or completely eliminate nicotine from tobacco products.

The aims of this ruling are to bring more attention to the health risks of smoking and to eliminate marketing tactics used by tobacco companies to lure children and adolescents to begin using cigarettes and other tobacco products. Examples of what the FDA can and will likely do in regards to tobacco products include:

• Banning tobacco product manufacturers from using the words “light,” “low,” or mild in product marketing

• Banning tobacco companies from sponsoring events that might attract younger people to smoking, such as sports and entertainment events

• Banning companies from producing or handing out tobacco-themed “freebies” such as t-shirts, or from handing out free cigarettes at events or bars.

• Requiring the use of more prominent warnings on tobacco products, which could even include depictions of tobacco-related diseases, such as lung cancer and heart disease

Several health advocacy groups applauded the passing of this bill, including the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the American Medical Association. The overall sentiment of these groups was that the new regulatory powers of the FDA will help prevent death and disease caused by tobacco use. Ironically (and no doubt for reasons regarding public image), Phillip Morris USA was in support of the bill, while other smaller tobacco companies were opposed to the bill because it might put them out of business.

Currently, just under a half million people die each year in the US from diseases associated with cigarette smoking (see image at right from the CDC’s website on tobacco and health risks: www.cdc.gov/tobacco).

It is anticipated that the new FDA regulations will help reduce the number of these deaths and have a positive affect on this country’s health overall.