Over the past year or so, vaping became an epidemic amongst teenagers. Fruity flavors such as mango and fruit medley drew teens to try it, and schools and parents caught on quickly. The booming startup company, Juul stood at the forefront of the issue. The Juul is a device that looks almost like a USB drive. The discrete device could be hidden easily, allowing students to use the device in school. To combat the issue within our community, consequences were made harsher, with longer out of school suspensions and longer athletic suspensions being added to the Life of a Lancer policy. After these efforts have seemingly failed to stop teens from vaping, the Food and Drug Administration stepped in to end the problem.
For months, the FDA hung the threat of taking the products off the shelves over the vaping companies’ heads. If the companies couldn’t prevent underage use, the FDA planned to take action themselves. The Juul company’s marketing was called into question with young models being shown using their product, despite the alleged purpose of the Juul being an alternative for cigarette users. Even the creator of the infamous “Joe Camel” called out the vaping company, stating that this marketing was worse than “Joe Camel” ever was.
But on Nov. 9, 2018 the FDA announced a restriction on Juul products as well as several other vaping companies such as Vuse. Their products that are more attractive to teens such as mango, fruit medley, and creme brulee vape pods will be removed from convenience stores and gas stations. Tobacco, mint, and menthol will still be available in those locations because of the fear of Juul users making the switch to menthol cigarettes.
For their online market, the Juul company put new security measures in place. Social security numbers must be entered at checkout to act as a background check and those that purchase them must be 21 years of age. The new feature will also be mandatory for vape stores if they want to be able to sell the products. This is a step in the right direction from the Juul company who is trying to save their reputation and now prevent underage use.
Hopefully these new safety measures will be able to help stem the epidemic of vaping amongst teenagers. The consequences have been steep costing star athletes their senior season because of the use of the addicting products. The FDA and Juul company have taken a step in the right direction to ending the crisis.
Most recently the company has tried to change its public image by releasing a new ad campaign. Adult smokers’ testimonials are given about how they used cigarettes for decades and with the help of Juul they were able to quit cigarettes. This campaign came after the company embraced big tobacco. $12.8 billion cash was invested in the company by a huge cigarette producer, Altria.
Overall, Juul could just be trying to save face and appear to be a better company than it is after the accusations made against them of focusing sales on teens. When it is put towards its correct consumers, then it can be beneficial and help them quit a harmful addiction.
