FDA plan to ban menthol smokes

oldpeculier

oldpeculier

Member
Three things up front:
(1) I don't smoke and I care not to be around it.
(2) Not a political issue. Obama and Trump FDA both made efforts to eliminate the menthol.
(3) I am not associated in any way with the tobacco industry.

The article basically says they want to eliminate the menthol in smokes because a high percent of black folks prefer them.
Does that not seem racist? Why selectively pick a product that is preferred by blacks? Wouldn't it be fair to everyone if a ban on all smokes was sought?

He added that the ban would also be an “important step to advance health equity” by reducing disparities in tobacco use.

No doubt smoking kills people, and the health negatives of using the products are well known. And yeah, the tobacco companies are not going along with any of it. If a person smokes or not is their choice, their business, IMO.

While the FDA is at it there are numerous other products that are harmful and addictive to people as well. If they're coming for alcohol next maybe they could go after the scotch and leave the Jose Cuervo be. Just sayin'.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/fda-issues-plan-to-ban-menthol-flavored-in-cigarettes-cigars
 

Menthol Cigarettes have been Banned in the UK since 2020

The menthol cigarette ban is part of an initiative by the European Union (EU) to protect people from the harmful effects of tobacco.


In the EU, tobacco consumption is the ‘single largest avoidable health risk’, and the ‘most significant cause of premature death’4. It is responsible for nearly 700,000 deaths every year and around 50% of smokers die prematurely (on average 14 years earlier than non-smokers)4.


As a response, the EU put together a piece of legislation called the ‘Tobacco Product Directive’. This legislation was designed to help create a consistent EU wide approach to tackling smoking. A focus of the legislation was on discouraging young people taking up smoking or helping them to quit, with 93% of smokers starting to smoke before they turn 264.


Products that are linked with taking up smoking by young people, and encouraging them to keep smoking, therefore found themselves in the firing line. This included products that modify the smell/taste of the cigarettes to mask tobacco, such as menthol cigarettes5.


It is important to note, the EU’s ‘Tobacco Product Directive’ was adopted back in 2014. It was then placed into British law through the The Tobacco and Related Products regulations in 2016. This means the legislation still applies in the UK even though the UK has left the EU.
 
oldpeculier said:
Three things up front:
(1) I don't smoke and I care not to be around it.
(2) Not a political issue. Obama and Trump FDA both made efforts to eliminate the menthol.
(3) I am not associated in any way with the tobacco industry.

The article basically says they want to eliminate the menthol in smokes because a high percent of black folks prefer them.
Does that not seem racist? Why selectively pick a product that is preferred by blacks? Wouldn't it be fair to everyone if a ban on all smokes was sought?

He added that the ban would also be an “important step to advance health equity” by reducing disparities in tobacco use.

No doubt smoking kills people, and the health negatives of using the products are well known. And yeah, the tobacco companies are not going along with any of it. If a person smokes or not is their choice, their business, IMO.

While the FDA is at it there are numerous other products that are harmful and addictive to people as well. If they're coming for alcohol next maybe they could go after the scotch and leave the Jose Cuervo be. Just sayin'.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/fda-issues-plan-to-ban-menthol-flavored-in-cigarettes-cigars
Click to expand...
Canada did this five years ago in 2017. link. Government of Canada finalizes ban on menthol in most tobacco products - Canada.ca

AS a result the number of smokers of all ages in Canada is about 12 percent of the national population. JimB.
 
hollydolly said:
Products that are linked with taking up smoking by young people, and encouraging them to keep smoking, therefore found themselves in the firing line. This included products that modify the smell/taste of the cigarettes to mask tobacco, such as menthol cigarettes5.
Click to expand...
this makes more sense as to why if the menthol is making it easier to mask smell or taste .... perhaps some may quit but i doubt it....
the nicotine is the addictive part....
What i find ironic about the idea of taking away the item masking the taste........that may get kids started smoking etc

while it seems like all the alcohol makers are trying to add fruit flavors or sweet flavors
example :those who might not like vodka straight now has vanilla or fruit flavored even cotton candy vodka ..... seems like they are targeting kids .....but no one says a thing .......
alcohol has a better lobby group i guess
 
oldpeculier said:
Three things up front:
(1) I don't smoke and I care not to be around it.
(2) Not a political issue. Obama and Trump FDA both made efforts to eliminate the menthol.
(3) I am not associated in any way with the tobacco industry.

The article basically says they want to eliminate the menthol in smokes because a high percent of black folks prefer them.
Does that not seem racist? Why selectively pick a product that is preferred by blacks? Wouldn't it be fair to everyone if a ban on all smokes was sought?

He added that the ban would also be an “important step to advance health equity” by reducing disparities in tobacco use.

No doubt smoking kills people, and the health negatives of using the products are well known. And yeah, the tobacco companies are not going along with any of it. If a person smokes or not is their choice, their business, IMO.

While the FDA is at it there are numerous other products that are harmful and addictive to people as well. If they're coming for alcohol next maybe they could go after the scotch and leave the Jose Cuervo be. Just sayin'.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/fda-issues-plan-to-ban-menthol-flavored-in-cigarettes-cigars
Click to expand...
While I heard that too I also heard that menthol cigarettes were much more addictive. I don't know I never smoked menthols.
 
One third of all smokers smoke menthol. Of those, many if not most happen to be black and/or young. I was, and to be truthful, still am, hooked on menthol cigarettes. I found cigarettes without them to be unsmokable for me. Then I met my husband who introduced me to menthol, so we both smoked Kool Kings together.

Except for a minor breakdown I haven't smoked in three years.......I desire to everyday. Right this second. The feeling is so strong sometimes. Tomorrow my son & grandson coming over. If my son smelled smoke there would be BIG Trouble. So, another day, week, month, year without it.
 
Becky1951 said:
Other races and older people ??? Guess they don't count.
Click to expand...
Good point, seems to me we should either mostly deregulate cigarettes or ban then outright. Most of the in-between is just hypocritical half measures.

Kind of doubt that second one would work, might employee some of the folks being displaced by marijuana legalization though.
 
Pepper said:
One third of all smokers smoke menthol. Of those, many if not most happen to be black and/or young. I was, and to be truthful, still am, hooked on menthol cigarettes. I found cigarettes without them to be unsmokable for me. Then I met my husband who introduced me to menthol, so we both smoked Kool Kings together.

Except for a minor breakdown I haven't smoked in three years.......I desire to everyday. Right this second. The feeling is so strong sometimes. Tomorrow my son & grandson coming over. If my son smelled smoke there would be BIG Trouble. So, another day, week, month, year without it.
Click to expand...
Pepper, congrats on the three year.

You may understand from personal experience what I am saying, perhaps poorly, in the OP. Looking at it from your point of view if menthol smokes, that you preferred, were banned wouldn't you feel singled out or discriminated against because you happen to enjoy them? If 85% of black people smoke and prefer the menthols I think they might feel singled out and P.O. if they were banned.
 
Back in the 70s and early 80s I was a pipe smoker, and there were a lot of heavily flavored pipe tobaccos available, but I don't recall a menthol one. My thought at the time was that the flavoring was just a cheap trick to cover up poor grades of tobacco.

How long will it take for there to be a profitable black market for menthol smokes....
 
Do you think it's a question of being an over-protective nanny state? I always wished smoking was banned outright. I probably would have found a dealer somewhere for menthol only and that's a whole other problem; mob involvement, etc.

No one can sanely defend their "right" to smoke cigarettes. It's a death trap. I stopped 3 years ago because I had lung cancer. For a teeny tiny dot of a tumor a third of my right lung was removed. Ouch, that really hurt.

No. I don't believe it's racist or anti youth. A substance known to destroy and kill should be as unpleasant as possible. I never would have gotten hooked on non menthol.
 
I quit smoking about 4 years or so ago. The smell of it is disgusting in the air and on clothes. I never really liked menthol but know others that did. Nicotine is a very addicting drug. I still use nicotine lozenges but at a very very low dose now. Not sure when I will give them up but sometimes worry what it is doing to me internally.
 
Pepper said:
Do you think it's a question of being an over-protective nanny state? I always wished smoking was banned outright. I probably would have found a dealer somewhere for menthol only and that's a whole other problem; mob involvement, etc.

No one can sanely defend their "right" to smoke cigarettes. It's a death trap. I stopped 3 years ago because I had lung cancer. For a teeny tiny dot of a tumor a third of my right lung was removed. Ouch, that really hurt.

No. I don't believe it's racist or anti youth. A substance known to destroy and kill should be as unpleasant as possible. I never would have gotten hooked on non menthol.
Click to expand...
I would certainly vote to eliminate ALL cigarettes. I suppose I do believe I am part of a nanny state.
 
In my early thirties I took up smoking menthol cigarettes, it was more for a bit of relaxation than anything. It wasn't long before I realised I was getting to like them more and more, obviously starting to get addicted to them. That was enough for me, I stopped them there and then.
 
One of the reasons why the number of smokers in Canada is becoming smaller year after year is a nation wide law about not smoking in any workplace. Simply expressed it goes like this....If somebody is being paid to be there, you can't smoke there. So no smoking in any workplace, and in many municipalities, you can't smoke in city parks or playgrounds. It works to reduce smoking. Surveys taken in Canada show that the higher a person's education level, the less likely they are to smoke. Jimb.
 
Can't smoke anywhere indoors in the Uk either, workplace, cafe's, bars, cinemas anywhere ..not for many years ... (except people's own homes)... I don't know if smoking is allowed in parks I expect it probably is, because I'd have heard of an outdoor smoking ban
 
Jules said:
Since this seemed very racist, I went into the link in the article and found this. This should have been quoted clearly again. Sloppy reporting.
Click to expand...
well it's clearly a clickbait.. because as you can see from my post it's got absolutely nothing to do with non-whites... it's all to do with it being more popular with the young than normal cigarettes
 
Becky1951 said:
"The U.S. government on Thursday released its long-awaited plan to ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars, citing the toll on Black smokers and young people."

Other races and older people ??? Guess they don't count. :ROFLMAO:
Click to expand...
Pepper said:
One third of all smokers smoke menthol. Of those, many if not most happen to be black and/or young.
Click to expand...
Pepper is right; most menthol smokers are Black and most young smokers prefer menthol and other flavors.

I'm a smoker. I don't like menthol cigarettes at all. I smoked flavored cigars for a while, though. Rum was my favorite, but I stopped smoking them when I found out my cigars weren't rum-soaked but just flavored, mostly artificially. Cigars that are actually rum-soaked are a lot more expensive, which makes sense.
 

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