The number of teens using tobacco products has dropped to its lowest level in 25 years, according to the CDC’s latest 2024 National Youth Tobacco Survey.
“This is really a remarkable public health success story,” said Yolonda Richardson, President and CEO, of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
This year, the youth smoking rate fell to 1.4% overall nationwide.
Yolanda Richardson with the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids credits smoking bans, awareness campaigns, federal regulation and increased taxes on products for this decline.
“If kids can’t afford it, then they’re not going to be able to access it. And so to keep those prices at a price point that just kept it out of the reach of kids,” she said.
However, she believes there is still more work to do as more than two million middle and high school students still report using tobacco.
“Whether it’s smoked, it’s vaped, it’s put in the mouth, these are not products that you should be able to have access to, and we really call on the FDA to continue to do its job and keep all these flavored products off the market,” said Richardson.
For the first time ever, the CDC also reports nicotine pouches are now the second most commonly used product among teens. The federal survey shows nearly one million students used these products this year alone.
These pouches contain nicotine that dissolves in the mouth and is then absorbed through the gums and lining of the mouth. Similar to e-cigarettes, advocates warn these products are appealing to young people because of kid-friendly flavors.
“I think including these products in all the laws that we that have already been passed is certainly a high priority,” said Thomas Carr with the American Lung Association. “Flavored tobacco product policies are really important here too. You have about 85.6% of kids who use these pouches, using flavor products.”
In June, leaders with the National Association of Tobacco Outlets told Congress that retailers support federal regulations to help reduce underage use. But the organization’s executive director, David Spross, told lawmakers about their growing concerns over unregulated products on the marketplace.
“Illicit markets are a much threat to that goal and thus a threat to the responsible retail community committed to working within, not outside the legal system,” he said during the congressional hearing in June.
He also called for a more effective regulatory system.
“That clearly communicates FDA’s enforcement priorities - that is the products it wants immediately removed and the products that can remain on the market,” said Spross.
Some advocacy groups are also calling on the White House to take action. They want the Biden administration to pursue a proposal to ban menthol-flavored cigarettes nationwide.
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