A Supreme Court decision has public health advocates and conservationists cheering about restrictions put on selling certain vape products.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the Food and Drug Administration can block companies from selling fruit- and candy-flavored vapes. The ruling overturned a previous decision by a lower court, which had concluded that the FDA illegally changed rules on companies while evaluating their marketing requests.
The decision "should encourage FDA to stay the course" when cracking down on e-cigarettes, Yolonda C. Richardson, president and CEO of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, told USA Today.
Advocacy groups claim these sweet-flavored vapes encourage teens to take up the habit. Vaping companies had claimed these flavors would help smokers quit tobacco products, but the FDA argued the companies failed to prove any benefit from those claims would outweigh the potential harm done to young people.
Nearly 6% of middle- and high-school students admit to using vaping products, of which 87% use flavored products, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Vaping companies hope this ban could be revoked under the new presidential administration. During his 2024 campaign, President Donald Trump vowed he would "save vaping" and that he would lessen many business regulations.
Although vaping products are relatively new, meaning there hasn't been much research into their long-term health impacts, officials are still convinced they pose a public health risk. The CDC warns that most e-cigarettes contain nicotine, and the aerosol within them can have cancer-causing chemicals.
These products also carry significant environmental risks. Single-use vapes are commonly littered and contribute to the planet's plastic pollution problem. The lithium batteries within e-cigarettes also degrade and leach into soil and waterways when not properly disposed of.
Because of the many complex parts that go into vaping products, they are difficult — if not impossible — to recycle.
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