The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that it has banned Juul Labs e-cigarettes from the U.S. market.
The company will no longer be able to sell its e-cigarettes and must remove all products from the market, according to a press release from the FDA.
“Today’s action is further progress on the FDA’s commitment to ensuring that all e-cigarette and electronic nicotine delivery system products currently being marketed to consumers meet our public health standards,” said FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert M. Califf in press release. “The agency has dedicated significant resources to review products from the companies that account for most of the U.S. market. We recognize these make up a significant part of the available products and many have played a disproportionate role in the rise in youth vaping.”
The FDA has spent the last two years reviewing Juul’s products and they found that the company has “lacked sufficient evidence regarding the toxicological profile” of e-cigarettes that would be appropriate to inform public health. in other words, Juul has kept pertinent information from the public that would inform them of the serious health risks of Juul products.
“As with all manufacturers, JUUL had the opportunity to provide evidence demonstrating that the marketing of their products meets these standards. However, the company did not provide that evidence and instead left us with significant questions,” said Michele Mital, acting director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products. “Without the data needed to determine relevant health risks, the FDA is issuing these marketing denial orders.”
E-cigarettes have grown in popularity over the last decade, particularly with younger generations. One survey found that almost one-fifth of middle and high school students have seen others use an e-cigarette in school. Juul has had a major issue with keeping their products out of schools, and it looks like the FDA is finally stepping in to try and fix the problem.
While e-cigarettes are considered to be less toxic than traditional cigarettes, the long-term effects are still dangerous. One Juul cartridge is roughly equivalent to the amount of nicotine in one pack of cigarettes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that nicotine exposure from e-cigarettes can harm brain development in young adults as the products contain chemicals, from heavy metals to cancer-causing elements, that are harmful to the lungs.
Juul has not made a public statement about the ban at this time.
