Health Law Daily Wrap Up, AGENCY NEWS—FDA, CDC report drop in youth e-cigarette usage, (Sep 6, 2024)

By WK Editorial Staff

The FDA’s and CDC’s actions to educate on dangers of tobacco use among youth shows promise with reductions.

New data from the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) reveal a significant decrease in e-cigarette use among U.S. youth in 2024. The FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that half a million fewer young people are using e-cigarettes compared to the previous year. The latest findings, published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), show a decrease from 2.13 million youth e-cigarettes usage (7.7 percent) in 2023 to 1.63 million youth (5.9 percent) in 2024. The agencies note the reduction as primarily driven by high school students, where e-cigarette use fell from 1.56 million to 1.21 million, as middle school students' usage rates remained statistically unchanged. Notably, the number of youth using e-cigarettes in 2024 is about one-third of what it was at its peak in 2019, when over five million youth reported current use.

Among youth who currently use e-cigarettes, 26.3 percent reported daily use. Despite the positive trends, both the FDA and CDC emphasize that there is still work to be done. Youth nicotine pouch use did not show a statistically significant change from 2023 to 2024. Approximately 1.8 percent of middle and high school students reported current use, with 22.4 percent of them using the products daily.

The agencies are particularly concerned about any youth-appealing tobacco products, including nicotine pouches, and are closely monitoring sales trends and potential public health threats.

IndustryNews: NewsStory AgencyNews GeneralNews FDCActNews TobaccoNews