Anti-Tobacco Groups Criticize FDA’s Decision to OK Four Menthol Vaping Products

Anti-tobacco groups are critical of the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) decision on Friday to authorize four menthol vaping products, the first non-tobacco-flavored e-cigarette products to win the agency’s authorization.

The products are made by NJOY. They are disposable e-cigarettes and nonrefillable pods that are used with the company’s reusable vaping device, CNN reports. The FDA said in a news release that the evidence submitted by NJOY “showed that these menthol-flavored products provided a benefit for adults who smoke cigarettes relative to that of the applicant’s previously authorized tobacco-flavored products—in terms of complete switching—that is sufficient to outweigh the risks of the product, including youth appeal.”

In a statement, Yolonda C. Richardson, President and CEO of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, said the FDA’s decision “is deeply troubling given the extensive scientific evidence that menthol is a flavor that appeals to kids and the FDA’s repeated conclusions that flavored e-cigarettes, including menthol-flavored products, have driven youth e-cigarette use.”

Other groups including the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Lung Association, also told CNN they were opposed to the FDA’s decision.