The Washington Post ran a story this morning on a new bill that would put tobacco under FDA control. The article provides a thorough look at the positions of both advocates and critics on the issue and benefits from the sociological commentary included in the reporting.
Post reporter Lyndsey Layton writes:
Legislation that the House Energy and Commerce Committee will take up today would place tobacco under the control of the Food and Drug Administration. Among other things, the bill would restrict the ways tobacco companies market cigarettes, require them to disclose the ingredients in their products and place larger warning labels on packages, and give the FDA the authority to require the removal of harmful chemicals and additives from cigarettes.
The legislation also seeks to crack down on techniques tobacco companies have used to attract children and teenagers, making it illegal to produce cigarettes infused with strawberry, grape, cloves and other sweet flavors. And it would prohibit tobacco makers from using the terms “low tar” and “light” when describing their products, suggesting a health benefit that scientists say does not exist.
Bring in the sociologist… Patricia McDaniel…
“It’s crazy — here’s this product that kills half of its longtime users, and there are very few restrictions on how it’s made and marketed,” said Patricia McDaniel, a sociologist at the University of California at San Francisco who has studied the history behind the bill.
“There’s a lot of opportunity for the FDA to do some pretty remarkable things: adding more visible warning labels, banning misleading descriptors, some authority over ingredients and allowing the FDA to prohibit certain types of marketing,” she said. “But there are a lot of unknowns. And there are questions about whether the FDA is the agency to regulate tobacco, especially now with the trouble it’s having regulating food and drugs.”
Comments 1
Mike Tobin — March 5, 2009
First off, I am glad that a product such as tobacco is going to be regulated by the FDA. Even though they may have a hard enough time regulating food and drugs as it is, something needs to be done about the tobacco industry!
The fact that the tobacco companies are going to be forced to put larger warning labels on their product is ridiculous! Is there really anyone smoking that is in their right mind to believe that smoking is not harmful to their body? Forcing the regulation of putting bigger warnings on their products isn't going to help at all. However, in parallel with that, I do feel that many of the users do not know exactly what is in the tobacco that they are smoking. Some know a few products, but rarely know what exactly they are inhailing into their bodies.
I know that the tobacco company is an industry and they just want to sell their product and make money just like every other business or industry, but targeting kids and young adults really does need to stop. Putting a ban on the "flavorful" cigarettes and the ads that target kids is a positive and a shocking step forward. Even though I completely agree with the regulation, I have a hard time believing that it is going to stand long. I feel that it may be taken as an unfair regulation that doesn't give them to market their product to whoever they wish. Until tobacco becomes illegal to use (which won't happen), I don't see anyone in the industry just sitting back and allowing a regulation to be placed without at least fighting it from a Constitutional standpoint.
These restrictions are extremely necessary and long past due. This product should not be able to be made in the manner that it is. It is more destructive to the human body than many illegal substances out there in our society. I am glad to see that this step forward is being taken!