Nicotine ordinance looks out for kids

By The Gazette Editorial Board

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Linn County Supervisors took a step this week toward regulating the sale of nicotine delivery systems and other products containing nicotine not covered by state law.

Supervisors are expected to approve second and third readings of the ordinance - which would require retailers to have a tobacco permit to sell “nicotine delivery systems and unregulated products containing nicotine,” and ban selling the items to minors - before month's-end.

That's a good idea.

The ordinance would regulate the sale of products containing dissolvable tobacco, snuff, and nicotine-infused jells and drinks, and electronic nicotine delivery systems, also called electronic cigarettes or e-cigarettes.

In order to sell the products, retailers would have to obtain a license and agree to control access to the products - following the same rules and laws as they would for regulated tobacco products, such as cigarettes.

There is good reason to limit the distribution of such products.

E-cigarettes allow users to inhale a vaporized liquid solution containing nicotine. They are marketed as a way for smokers to ingest nicotine without exposing others to secondhand smoke.

But according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, e-cigarettes may contain ingredients that are unsafe or toxic to humans.

Because the FDA hasn't reviewed any clinical studies about the safety and efficacy of e-cigarette products, it's impossible to say whether they are safe, or what types or concentrations of chemicals - including nicotine - they contain.

That's true for other unregulated nicotine products, too, Jill Roeder, healthy behaviors branch manager for Linn County Public Health, told us.

She said some products that would be regulated under the ordinance have been found to actually contain more nicotine than traditional tobacco products.

Public health officials also worry that unregulated nicotine products are an underhanded way to try to hook minors on what the National Institute on Drug Abuse calls one of the nation's most heavily used addictive drugs. They say the packaging and flavoring of such products is a clear attempt to lure underage users.

Manufacturers deny that claim, of course, but we still see no reason to allow underage customers to purchase such highly addictive products.

If Linn County approves the ordinance, they wouldn't be alone. Communities across the country are considering similar action. And well they should.

If adults want to purchase and use nicotine delivery devices knowing the risks, that's their decision as long as the products are legal.

But it's another thing entirely to allow children access to e-cigarettes or other products containing addictive nicotine.

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