As a service to our local communities, the personal injury lawyers at Liever, Hyman & Potter, P.C., want(s) to share important information about new heat-not-to-burn cigarettes that are now on the market and which place children at risk.
Although the use of traditional cigarettes – particularly among teens – has declined considerably, the use of electronic cigarettes has increased. A new smoke-free product called heated tobacco is gradually taking a grip on the market in the United States. Heated tobacco is also referred to as heat-not-to-burn tobacco products, which are devices that heat a cigarette without the use of an open flame. Of great concern is that unlike e-cigarettes (or a vape device) that do not contain tobacco, heated tobacco products administer nicotine and other chemicals and additives in an aerosol form directly from the cigarette. Teenagers are at significant risk because of the curiosity associated with their age group. It has been reported that heated tobacco products have been around in the U.S. since 2019, and they have caught the attention of high school students. So far, only one product from Phillip Morris has been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration, and the company concedes that the product “is not for youth at all.”
Because of the slick design of heated tobacco products, Dr. Shu-Hong Zhu, California’s Director of Tobacco Control Intervention at the Center for Research and Intervention in San Diego, has stated to ABC News that it is time to “raise the alarm” given the fear that this new product could be the new e-cigarette. Physicians at the American Academy of Pediatrics have warned these devices have the same level of nicotine as cigarettes and emit a secondhand aerosol that is similar in properties to secondhand smoke, which is unsafe to breathe. The medical director, Dr. Maria Rahmandar, of the Substance Use and Prevention Program at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, provided ABC News with a stark reminder: “There is no safe tobacco product. There is no safe nicotine product.” The aforementioned information was taken from a news report of ABC News.
The attorneys at Liever, Hyman & Potter, P.C., have always been concerned for the health and well-being of children, teens, and families in Reading, Berks County, Pottsville, Schuylkill County, and throughout Central and Eastern PA, including Philadelphia. Our attorneys handle all injury claims, including those that have caused serious injury or death due to the negligence of others.
From the desk of Adam K. Levin, Esquire