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Tobacco Control Program Newsletter |
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In June 2024, McDonalds introduced the $5 Meal Deal, offering customers a $4.36 discount for a sandwich, McNuggets, fries, and a drink. Tobacco companies also employ a value-added approach in marketing e-cigarettes with one important caveat: repeated use of the product causes addiction and increases the likelihood of illness and disease.
A 2023 study of retailer sales of disposable e-cigarettes from 2017 to 2022 by the Schroeder Institute shows that the average volume of e-liquid in disposables increased by 518%. While the per unit price increased by 165%, the per millimeter cost of the e-liquid in disposable vapes decreased by 69% (from $7.96 to $2.45 per milliliter of e-liquid).
Additionally, tobacco companies have given the customer added âvalueâ by selling disposables with high levels of nicotine. From 2017 to 2022, the average nicotine strength increased from 2% to 4%, and in 2022, tobacco companies introduced 48 new products with a 6% nicotine strength.
This strategy disproportionally impacts youth who, compared to adults, are more price sensitive and more vulnerable to becoming addicted to nicotine. The market is also being flooded with new nicotine pouches with nicotine content in some brands as high as 7% to 9%. The pouches have the added advantage of concealing the use of nicotine in settings such as schools or worksites where e-cigarettes may be banned.
Twenty-seven countries in the European Union have already passed laws that cap nicotine levels in e-cigarettes at 2%. In the United States the absence of a federal regulation prohibiting the sale of high tobacco products provides tobacco companies with one more strategy to addict a new generation of youth to the drug nicotine.
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Meet Our TCP Partners:
King George County Parks and Recreation
King George Parks & Recreation teamed up with the King George High School Chapter of Y Street and the "Share the Air"Â campaign in 2020 to promote tobacco and vape-free parks. This initiative aims to protect both public health and the environment by discouraging the use of tobacco products and e-cigarettes in outdoor recreational areas.
The campaign involves signage in parks and public education efforts to create smoke-free zones. By implementing these measures, King George Parks & Recreation is working to reduce secondhand smoke exposure, decrease tobacco-related litter, and promote healthier lifestyles for park visitors of all ages.
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Tobacco Free Parks
Kudos to these Virginia Parks and Recreation partners that recently became tobacco free! Read more about the Share the Air campaign and how your parks can go tobacco free.
- Fairfax County Park Authority (July)
- James City County Parks and Recreation (July)
- City of Falls Church Recreation and Parks (July)
- Fluvanna County Parks and Recreation (August)
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Data Highlight
The VDH Tobacco Control Program collaborated on a report with the VDH Community Health Improvement Epidemiology Team. We published the report on the VDH website earlier this summer.
The report analyzes e-cigarette use among adults aged 18-24 years old in Virginia who identified as having depression based on responses to questions on the 2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) survey.
Important findings in this analysis suggest that e-cigarette users had a 2.28-fold higher odds of reporting a history of clinical diagnosis of depression than non e-cigarette users. You can read the full article by visiting this link.
Encourage those you know who use tobacco or nicotine to visit our QuitNowVirginia.org website to learn more about the many resources in place to assist any individual on their quit journey!
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Free help to quit tobacco.
Quit Coaches available for support.
- www.QuitNowVirginia.org
- 1-800-QUIT NOW (1-800-784-8669) or text READY to 34191
- A free 24/7 service for all Virginians, 13 and older for all types of tobacco/nicotine
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Free Vaping Resources for Teens, Youth Adults, & their Support Circles.
- VapeFreeVA.org
- Find vaping prevention and cessation facts & tips
- Support Circle tips are for any adult concerned about vaping -- parents, guardians, educators, physicians, etc.
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- Becoming a Tobacco Free Worksite,
- Referring your patients and clients proactively to Quit Now Virginia,
- Finding your local tobacco and nicotine coalition, or
- Scheduling a tobacco and nicotine related training for your staff or community.
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