As required under the provisions of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (the law which granted the FDA the authority to regulate cigarettes, roll-your-own tobacco and smokeless tobacco), the FDA’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) studied the use of menthol in cigarettes and issued a report and set of recommendations on March 18, 2011.

The TPSAC report contained numerous conclusions, and several of the most significant conclusions are as follows:

(1) The evidence does not indicate increased disease risks in smokers of menthol cigarettes compared to non-menthol cigarettes.

(2) The availability of menthol cigarettes has led to an increase in the number of smokers and that this increase does have an adverse public health impact in the United States.

(3) The removal of menthol cigarettes from the marketplace would benefit the public health in the United States.

(4) A potential exists for contraband menthol cigarettes if the FDA chooses to implement a ban or take some other policy action that restricts the availability of menthol cigarettes, and the FDA would need to assess the potential for contraband menthol cigarettes if such action is contemplated.

In response to the TPSAC report, tobacco industry manufacturers and the three non-voting industry members of TPSAC compiled an industry viewpoint report. The industry’s report stated, in part, that the scientific data demonstrates no difference in disease, initiation, cessation or dependence between menthol and non-menthol cigarettes, there is no scientific basis to support the regulation of menthol cigarettes any differently than non-menthol cigarettes and that a ban on menthol cigarettes would result in a dramatically larger illegal cigarette market than currently.

While the FDA has conducted an initial review of the TPSAC and industry reports, the agency has not taken any official action. Under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, there is no timetable or requirement that the FDA adopt any regulations regarding menthol in cigarettes.

Collier County Health Department says it’s a shameless ploy that’s gaining steam. “They know that children are attracted to sweet products, and if they get them hooked on the sweet products then they have a lifetime user,” Rachel Kleist of the Collier County Health Department said Wednesday. Dip, cigars, and cigarillos are now offered in flavors from grape to sour apple, and showcased surprisingly close to candy.

“The flavors don’t make them any safer, don’t make them any less dangerous. They just mask the harsh taste of a regular tobacco product,” Kleist said.

According to a 2010 statewide survey, the candy-flavored tobacco trend is catching on. 17.6% of Collier County youth between the ages of 11 and 17 have tried it and 19.9% in Lee County.

One new product raising eyebrows looks strikingly similar to a breath mint.

“The tobacco companies have created a product called Orbs. They are packaged in a container that looks exactly like a Tic-Tac package. You put them in your mouth and suck on them just like a Tic-Tac,” Kleist said.

But the minty flavor only masks the health hazards. The Health Department says most flavored tobacco products pack in more nicotine than cigarettes and are difficult for parents to detect.

“You could be sitting there and not even know they’re in the mouth of the person,” Kleist said.

Collier County Commissioners passed a resolution asking local stores to pull flavored tobacco products from their shelves.

The FDA banned flavored cigarettes back in 2009, but right now, there are limited restrictions on smokeless tobacco products and cigars.

Flavored cigarettes, such as Camel Exotic Blends, Kool Smooth Fusion and Salem Silver Label brands, began to be marketed in the late 1990s. Concerns exist about flavored cigarettes due to the appeal such products may have for young people. This study examined flavored cigarette use by individuals between the age of 17–26 years and those 25 years of age and older.

Study participants were part of two national telephone surveys, the National Youth Smoking Cessation Survey (NYSCS) and the Assessing Hardcore Smoking Survey (AHCSS), conducted in 2004 and 2005.

Key Findings:

In the NYSCS, smokers that reported using flavored cigarettes most often were individuals 17 years of age (22.8%) and those 18–19 years of age (21.7%).
Of the smokers in the NYSCS (age range from 17–26 years), 11.9 percent reported flavored cigarette use in the past 30 days. Among the AHCSS sample (age 25 and older), 6.7 percent of smokers reported flavored cigarette use.
Camel Exotic Blends was the most frequently used brand of flavored cigarettes in both surveys. The majority of these smokers reported using the brand 1–2 days per month and a different brand for the cigarettes they smoked on a daily basis.
Flavored cigarette use was most prevalent among youth between 17–19 years of age. Although used somewhat infrequently, the fact that younger individuals reported the highest usage is an area of concern.

Tobacco companies are now targeting kids with a sweet incentive. New candy-flavored tobacco products are hitting the shelves of area convenience stores and 16-year-old Marisa Santoyo-Solorio says it’s catching the attention of her peers. “You’d be surprised at how many kids use it,” she says. According to the Collier County Health Department, in 2010, nearly 18% of the county’s youth ages 11-17 have tried flavored tobacco.

In Charlotte County, the health department reports that in 2010, 13% of high school students have tried smokeless tobacco.

“These are the starter producers for 90% of youth that start smoking,” says Jennifer Smith of the Collier County Health Department.

Products like Swisher Sweets, Skoal, and a new product, Orbs, are offered in a variety of flavors and eye-catching packages.

“It smells like candy, looks like candy, colorful so it brings your attention,” Marisa says.

The Collier County Health Department says that this is just another way the nicotine industry is targeting the younger generation.

“They know they like candy and sweets so if they can produce the product, the youth will be more susceptible to try those products,” Smith says.

The FDA is looking to regulate flavored tobacco, and Collier County commissioners have actually passed a resolution urging local vendors to stop selling it.

Menthol may increase smoking and addiction to cigarettes, according to a study by researchers at Yale University and the University of Connecticut. The way menthol does this is by reducing the body’s response to irritants in the smoke, according to a press release issued by Yale. In what they called a potent effect, researchers found that airway receptors in mice who inhaled cigarette smoke lost the ability to trigger sensations of irritation, which in people will trigger “smoker’s cough” and other effects.

“By suppressing the sensation of irritation, menthol may make smoke inhalation easier to tolerate, and therefore promote nicotine addiction and smoking-related illness,” said author Sven-Eric Jordt, associate professor of pharmacology at Yale School of Medicine, in the release.

“Studies indicate that most young people smoke menthol cigarettes,” Jordt said. “So they are being exposed to higher levels of nicotine and other toxic substances at a young age, which may lead to rapid addiction and, ultimately, the development of smoking-related disease.”

Menthol is found in peppermint and has a “cooling” effect with mild anesthetic qualities. It is added to almost all cigarettes by manufacturers, Yale said, with some brands marketed as menthol cigarettes.

The 2009 Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act banned flavored tobacco additives such as cloves, cinnamon, candy or other flavors, but exempted menthol, Yale said. The Food and Drug Administration is evaluating scientific data on menthol and could ban it as well.

Does smoking a menthol-flavored cigarette brand make it harder to quit. Some say yes, some say no. Now, researchers at The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) and UMDNJ-School of Public Health add fuel to the debate. Their study finds that menthol cigarettes are associated with decreased quitting in the United States, and that this effect is more pronounced for African-Americans and Puerto Ricans.

The findings, which appear in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, are being released as the Related
Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Tobacco Products is currently considering banning menthol cigarettes after its own Tobacco Product Scientific Advisory Committee (TPSAC) concluded that “removal of menthol cigarettes from the marketplace would benefit public health in the United States.”
African-Americans object
Last fall the National Black Chamber of Commerce (NBCC) formally opposed the FDA proposal to ban menthol cigarettes, charging it was a move directed against African-Americans.

“It is no secret that menthol cigarettes provide a distinctive taste that is preferred by many African Americans,” NBCC President Harry Alford said. “In making a recommendation, it is my fervent hope that the committee not make a decision based on mixed information, decades-old marketing information, inconclusive studies or preconceived notions.”

Earlier this year, a study funded by the National Cancer Institute concluded smoking menthol cigarettes made it no more likely the smoker would die of cancer.

The Town of Jupiter wants to ask retailers to pull flavored tobacco off their shelves. In a special meeting on Thursday, the town council could vote to approve the resolution. The resolution states having flavored tobacco in stores that youth can access could lead to youth tobacco use. According to statistics shown within the resolution, nearly 90 percent of tobacco users started before they were 18 years old.

Examples of flavored tobacco this resolution is trying to curb includes Grape, Wine, Cream or Cotton Candy flavored cigars, chewing tobacco and rolling papers.

Palm Beach County Health Department Tobacco Prevention Specialist Janiece Davis, who helped write the resolution said, “I don’t know too many adults who would want to smoke a cotton candy cigarette but to the youth it sounds different to them and sounds like flavored and candy.”

The resolution would only urge retailers to pull the flavored tobacco off their shelves.

It would not enforce the removal of flavored tobacco from stores.

Mobil Jupiter West manager Camille Giordano isn’t sure the resolution is a good idea.

Giordano said flavored tobacco makes up a big part of her store’s tobacco sales on West Indiantown Road.

“Our sales would definitely go down if we weren’t selling them,” said Giordono.

Giordano said enough work is already done not to sell any tobacco products to minors and a resolution might not be needed.

“We do not sell to minors. They have stings all the time. All my cashiers and myself when anyone comes in, if they don’t look older than me, we ID them,” said Giordano.

Davis said a similar flavored tobacco resolution was passed in Belle Glade last month.

David Wesley Page speaks with CNN reporter John Sepulvedo about the current actions taking place as the FDA has stepped in looking to set a ban on the menthol cigarettes. In 2009 the FDA got the authority to ban flavored cigarettes to prevent underage smoking. Tobacco companies agreed as long as menthol cigarrettes were discluded from the ban. Two years later the FDA is back and looking to make a lawsuit to ban the Menthol.

Lorillard Inc., the third largest manufacturer of cigarettes in the United States, said that it voluntarily implemented a precautionary recall of certain Newport Non-menthol cigarettes. The company initiated the recall “out of an abundance of caution” following its discovery that some Newport Non-Menthol cigarettes manufactured June 29 and 30, 2011, could contain small pieces of plastic.

The company sought and received guidance from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) upon discovering the foreign substance.

No plastic has been found in any of the cigarettes. If burned, the plastic may create discomfort or irritation of the respiratory tract. The recall is limited to products distributed with the following code numbers, which are located on the bottom of the pack:
Newport Non-Menthol Box 80s: 1-O-29-750, 1-O-30-750.
Newport Non-Menthol Box 100s: 1-O-29-440, 1-O-30-440.
No other Lorillard products are affected, including Newport Menthol and other brands, said the company.

A letter provided to CSP Daily News that Lorillard sent to all direct-buying customers on July 19 said, “We are pleased to inform you that all involved Newport Non-Menthol Box 80s and Newport Non-Menthol Box 100s manufactured on 6/29/2011 or 6/30/2011 located in Direct Account locations have now been identified and segregated. As such, all Direct Account customers may resume retail shipments of all other on-hand inventories of Newport Non-Menthol products that were not segregated and discussed with you.”

A letter sent to all retail customers said, “All public distributing warehouses and our direct buying customers have already segregated this product and therefore, any future shipments you
receive have no issue. We are, however, now asking for your assistance in identifying any involved Newport Non-Menthol product that may have reached your retail outlet.”

The company added, “Should you identify any Newport Non-Menthol product in your retail outlet with the involved lot codes please hold them separately from your other Newport Non-Menthol products and arrange to have them returned to your wholesale supplier. We have authorized your wholesale supplier to accept returns of Newport Non-Menthol with the above lot codes. Also, if any of your customers have purchased any Newport Non-Menthol product with the above lot codes and returned them to you please provide them with a full refund of the purchase price and return the product to your wholesale supplier.”

Greensboro, N.C.-based Lorillard, through its Lorillard Tobacco Co. subsidiary, is the third largest manufacturer of cigarettes in the United States. Founded in 1760, it is the oldest continuously operating U.S. tobacco company. Lorillard’s flagship menthol-flavored premium cigarette brand is the top-selling menthol and second largest selling cigarette in the United States. In addition to Newport, the Lorillard product line has four additional brand families marketed under the Kent, True, Maverick and Old Gold brand names. These five brands include 43 different product offerings which vary in price, taste, flavor, length and packaging.