E-cigarettes are creating the next generation of addicts

I note from
The
BMJ
(2015;350:h2083) that e-cigarette use has tripled in middle and high school students in the United States from 2013 to 2014. This makes clear the intentions of the companies that market these products. More of the American school students now use e-cigarettes than traditional cigarettes.

We should not kid ourselves that the e-cigarettes we sell will overwhelmingly be used for smokers trying to quit. It may be true now but things will change quickly. In any case, simply changing to e-cigarettes does nothing to address the nicotine addiction, which itself is far from harmless.

Clearly manufacturers wish to create the next generation of nicotine addicts and pharmacists should not facilitate this process.

Brian Curwain

Christchurch,

Dorset 

Last updated
Citation
The Pharmaceutical Journal, PJ, 9/16 May 2015, Vol 294, No 7861/2;294(7861/2):DOI:10.1211/PJ.2015.20068389

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