E-Cig Debate Should Focus on ‘Issues That Really Matter’FDA’s...

E-Cig Debate Should Focus on ‘Issues That Really Matter’FDA’s Zeller acknowledges potential of therapeutic nicotine 

Via: CSPNET.COM

NEW YORK – As with his presentation at the NATO Show, Mitch Zeller’s appearance at the Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA) Conference centered on the concept of a continuum of risk when it comes to nicotine and tobacco products. The director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) went so far as to say the pro-vaping attendees were “preaching to the choir” when they called for a change in rhetoric for the debate over electronic cigarettes.

Attendee Bonnie Herzog, Wells Fargo’s senior tobacco analyst, said that Zeller agreed the societal debate needs to focus on “issues that really matter,” like the role e-cigs could potentially play in harm reduction. The current e-cig/vaping debate has zeroed in on issues like youth usage, flavors and marketing. Though Herzog acknowledged these points are “undoubtedly very important,” she expressed concerns that they are “diverting attention from the bigger-picture issues.”

“Encouragingly, Director Zeller underscored the importance of ‘opening up the dialogue’ across various stakeholders in the nicotine space, suggesting to us that he and the agency remain committed to using science and data to shape regulation while recognizing the nicotine continuum of risk, which is consistent with his previous comments,” she continued in a research note.

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http://ift.tt/1PIKRu3 May 14, 2015 at 12:34PM GrimmGreen.com http://ift.tt/177rnJE http://ift.tt/1RKgQ0w