WASHINGTON - (INT) - Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) sent a letter to Food and Drug Administration (FDA) along with a petition signed by more than 5,000 Californians urging the agency to finalize a rule to regulate e-cigarettes and protect public health.

The rule would bring e-cigarettes under the purview of the FDA and would also ban sales to children under 18, require disclosure of product ingredients, and prohibit manufacturers from claiming their products are less harmful than traditional cigarettes without scientific evidence supporting their claims.

According to the journal Pediatrics, the number of children aged 12 to 17 years exposed to e-cigarette marketing increased by 256% between 2011 and 2013.

This increased exposure has coincided with a dramatic rise in the use of e-cigarettes by youth and an increased risk of addiction to tobacco products, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting that e-cigarette use among high school students tripled during the same period.

Story Date: March 19, 2015