A woman smokes an E-Cigarette at Digital Ciggz in San Rafael, California.
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The American Medical Association called for a total ban on all vaping products that haven’t been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to help quit smoking, the nation’s largest association of physicians announced Tuesday.
“The recent lung illness outbreak has alarmed physicians and the broader public health community and shined a light on the fact that we have very little evidence about the short- and long-term health consequences of e-cigarettes and vaping products,” said AMA President Dr. Patrice A. Harris in a press release.
The AMA also urged more research funding to study the effects of e-cigarette usage, new diagnostic codes for vaping related illnesses and thorough study of strategies to treat juvenile nicotine dependence resulting from e-cigarette usage.
The Trump Administration is currently weighing whether to ban most e-cigarette flavors, although it has delayed a formal decision since announcing its plans in September.
So far, a vaping-related lung disease has killed at least 42 people and sickened another 2,172, according to the Centers of Disease Control. The proposed ban would also help to curb the growing rates of teen e-cigarette usage. More than one in four high school students use e-cigarettes, according to the CDC.
The FDA has not yet approved any vaping product for therapeutic uses or for marketing.