Electronic cigarettes, also known as e-cigs, are being specifically marketed to children, and NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer says it needs to stop.
In testimony last December to the FTC, Stringer noted that the makers of these vaporized cigarettes are now using marketing tactics-- such as cartoons in ads, sweet flavors and sponsored concerts and sports events — to appeal to a younger market, which has become a huge problem, even though the age for both regular smokes and the electronic vapor devices is 21.
"The same companies that peddled 'Joe Camel' and similar, kid-friendly images to an earlier generation are back with new ad strategies that appear to target e-cigarettes just as explicitly toward children and teens, with little or no regard for any potential health impacts," he wrote.
A study by an anti-smoking group this year found more than 80 percent of American youth are exposed to e-cigarette marketing. Likewise, the use of e-cigs among high school students has skyrocketed in recent years.
On Sunday, January 17, at Goddard Riverside, located at 593 Columbus Ave, Comptroller Stringer, along with Public Advocate Letitia James and other elected officials will hold a rally, calling on the city to end the use of e-cig marketing campaigns that target children.
"While the complete health impacts of e-cigarettes are not yet known, there is a clear consensus concerning the damaging effects of nicotine on adolescent brain development," Stringer said in his testimony. "As a result, we must fully understand how e-cigarettes are being marketed to our youth and take immediate action to protect our children from the danger posed by new nicotine delivery devices."
