It all started out with a magical device that at first, had all kinds of different looks. Now, the most popular look is that similar to a flash drive. The e-cigarette was invented to help people of smoking age quit smoking. Recently, the use of these devices has become widely popular among minors.

Many of these minors obtain their vaporizers in various ways. Most notably, through an adult dealer, or buying them online because one must be 18 or older to legally purchase an e-cig.

For this reason, the F.D.A has set new regulations on vape stores and manufacturers by implementing a 60 day deadline for them to find a way to keep their products away from minors. They also have threatened to ban flavored vape juices, which is a major draw for a lot of minors.

In fact, Juul, an e-cig manufacturer, has already halted the sale of flavored e-cigarette products in stores. Higher chances of criminal and civil charges will also occur if stores continue to allow bulk sales through their websites.

With this new deadline, 1,100 retailers have all been sent warning letters, whereas many other companies have received fines ranging anywhere from $279 to $11,182.

The F.D.A cites claims that vape juice flavors like mango or bubble gum were made to attract teens to the product as reasoning for their banning of certain vape juices. In a study published in the Journal Tobacco Regulatory Science, a total of 6700 young people were surveyed, and 80 percent of these people said that they preferred flavored juices. The same survey showed that 77 percent of high school and middle school students, and 73 percent of young adults would not continue to use e-cigarettes if flavored juices were not an option. Also, almost every person surveyed said that their first e-cigarette contained flavored vape juice.

Although federal law prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes to anybody under the age of 18, the F.D.A. commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb reported that two million students between middle and high school are regular users of e-cigarettes.

According to CBS News, a study showed that teen use of e-cigarettes has risen from one and a half percent of high school students to 12 percent in 2017 alone. The same study also showed that more than three percent of middle schoolers have admitted to vaping recently.

An anonymous GHHS student believes these new regulations will not curb the use of vaporizers and e-cigs by students because it’s about the buzz or feeling  you recieve.

“I think that it will not stop teens from vaping,” Anonymous said. “Also many adults love the sweet flavors so it won’t do anything other than make adults use different products. I will not be affected other than them taking away pods like mango. I am 18, so they cannot stop me from buying them.”