E-Cigarette Risks Among Children and Young Adults Prompt Warning from Ohio Attorney General

Strategic Insights -

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine and Dr. Peter Shields, Deputy Director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center -- James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, have sounded the alarm about the rapidly increasing use of e-cigarettes among children and young adults. As the new school year begins, parents are being urged to be aware of the potential risks associated with e-cigarettes, which can be easily concealed among school supplies.

Key Takeaways:

  • E-cigarette use among high school students increased nearly 800 percent from 2011 to 2014, according to the National Youth Tobacco Survey.
  • Similar increases were observed among middle school students, with calls to poison control centers about e-cigarette and liquid nicotine exposure increasing more than 1,200 percent from 2011 to 2014.
  • More than half of reported exposures involved children under the age of six, and one teaspoon of concentrated liquid nicotine could kill a 1-year-old child.
  • Studies suggest that teenage brains are permanently affected by nicotine exposure, with possible long-term cognitive and mood effects.
  • E-cigarette marketing expenditures have increased from an estimated $6.4 million in 2011 to more than $59.3 million in 2013, using tactics similar to those used by big tobacco companies to sell cigarettes to young people.
  • Attorney General DeWine has led a bipartisan coalition in urging the U.S. FDA to regulate e-cigarettes and related products, and has called on companies to act responsibly and limit youth exposure to e-cigarette marketing.
  • As a U.S. Senator, DeWine sponsored legislation granting the FDA authority over the marketing of tobacco products to kids, and as Ohio Attorney General, he supported legislation to ban the sale of e-cigarettes to those under 18.

Statistics:

  • 800% increase in e-cigarette use among high school students from 2011 to 2014 (National Youth Tobacco Survey)
  • 1,200% increase in calls to poison control centers about e-cigarette and liquid nicotine exposure from 2011 to 2014 (American Association of Poison Control Centers)
  • More than 50% of reported exposures involved children under the age of six
  • 1 teaspoon of concentrated liquid nicotine can kill a 1-year-old child
  • $6.4 million to $59.3 million increase in e-cigarette marketing expenditures from 2011 to 2013

Sources:

  • The Ohio Attorney General's Office (release)
  • The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center -- James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute (quote)
  • National Youth Tobacco Survey (data)
  • American Association of Poison Control Centers (data)
  • The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (regulatory efforts)
  • Ohio State University Center of Excellence in Regulatory Tobacco Science (CERTS) (research program)