FDA Restarts US Effort to Ban Menthol Cigarettes

 

American health officials are again promising¹ to seek a ban on menthol cigarettes. This time, they are under pressure from African American groups to remove the menthol taste popular among Black smokers².

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tried several times to ban menthol cigarettes, also known as menthols. But it faced major opposition³ from the tobacco industry, some lawmakers and interest groups under the two former administrations. Any menthol ban will take years to go into effect and will likely face lawsuits⁶ from tobacco companies.

The FDA's announcement Thursday is the result of legal action in 2020 by anti-smoking and medical groups. The groups argued that officials had "unreasonably⁷ delayed" answering a 2013 petition seeking a menthol ban.

The agency said it aims to launch measures banning menthols in the coming year.

The action would also ban tobaccos made to taste like fruit. Such products are becoming more popular with young people, especially young Black people.

Mitch Zeller leads the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products. He said in a statement: "Taken together, these policies will help save lives and improve the public health of our country." Zeller noted⁸ that smoking is the leading cause of preventable disease and death in the U.S.

Menthol is the only cigarette flavor that was not banned under a 2009 law that gave the FDA power over tobacco products. But the law did require the agency to continue to consider such a ban.

Anti-smoking activists⁹ are angry that menthol products are still on the market. They point to research that menthol's cooling effect suppresses a smoker's sense of pain. The research says this likely makes it easier to start and harder to stop. The mint-flavored cigarettes are mostly used by young people and people of color. About 85 percent of Black smokers smoke menthols. About one-third of white smokers do as well.

"The science is there, the data is there, so why are these products still on the market?" Carol McGruder told the Associated Press. McGruder is a founding member of the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council.

Her group launched a lawsuit⁵ with Action on Smoking and Health, the American Medical Association and the National Medical Association (NMA). The NMA represents Black doctors.

For many years, tobacco companies marketed their menthol cigarettes to Black communities. Their campaigns included financing music performances and neighborhood events. Company documents released through the 1990s lawsuits also show the companies saw menthols as good "starter" products as they appealed to teens.

In the late 1990s, new restrictions¹⁰ banned cigarette ads from billboards¹², public transport and most tobacco-financed events. Companies moved much of their marketing¹³ to places like gas stations and small neighborhood markets. Research has shown both kinds of businesses are heavily present in Black neighborhoods.

About one-third of all cigarettes sold in the U.S. are menthols so a ban would hurt tobacco industry profits. As smoking has decreased in America, tobacco companies have been pushing similar products, including electronic cigarettes. But those still make up a very small percentage of industry sales.

Reynolds American makes the popular menthol cigarette Newport. In a statement, it said public science does not support treating menthol cigarettes differently from non-menthol.

The Altria corporation owns several tobacco product companies. It sharply criticized the FDA proposal, which it described as "criminalizing menthol."

Smoking causes cancer, strokes and heart attacks and is blamed for 480,000 deaths each year. About 14 percent of Americans smoke cigarettes, with rates around the same between white and Black populations. But Black smokers are less likely to effectively stop smoking, which the U.S. Surgeon General and others have linked to menthol cigarettes.

Menthol is a chemical compound found naturally in mint plants. But it can be produced in a laboratory. Known for its cooling effect, the chemical is also used in some medicines. Cigarette makers⁴ began adding the chemical in the 1920s after realizing it reduced the burning feeling smokers can experience.

Past government efforts against menthol have faced resistance from lawmakers in tobacco states like North Carolina. But some members of the Congressional Black Caucus¹⁴ (CBC) who received campaign donations from cigarette companies also opposed the ban.

Some CBC members warned that banning menthol would create an illegal market for the products. And they said it might lead to increased law enforcement in Black communities.

Yet calls for action have been growing. And last year the House of Representatives voted to ban the flavor with support from most Black members. The bill was ignored in the Republican-controlled Senate after President Trump¹⁵ made clear he opposed the measure.

Words in This Story

menthol – n. an oil made from mint that has a strong smell and is used in cigarettes, candy and medicines for sore throats

cigarette – n. a small roll of paper that is filled with cut tobacco and smoked

lawsuit – n. a case in court involving a claim or complaint by one party against another

petition – n. a document that many people sign to show that they want a person or organization to do or change something

flavor – n. a substance or extract that provides a particular taste

data – n. facts or information used usually to calculate, analyze¹⁶, or plan something

billboard¹¹ – n. a flat surface or board, usually outdoors, on which very large advertisements or notices are posted

1 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

2 smokers   

吸烟者( smoker的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily. 许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。
• Chain smokers don't care about the dangers of smoking. 烟鬼似乎不在乎吸烟带来的种种危害。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

6 lawsuits   

n.诉讼( lawsuit的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Lawsuits involving property rights and farming and grazing rights increased markedly. 涉及财产权，耕作与放牧权的诉讼案件显著地增加。 来自辞典例句
• I've lost and won more lawsuits than any man in England. 全英国的人算我官司打得最多，赢的也多，输的也多。 来自辞典例句

7 unreasonably   

adv. 不合理地

参考例句：

• He was also petty, unreasonably querulous, and mean. 他还是个气量狭窄，无事生非，平庸刻薄的人。
• Food in that restaurant is unreasonably priced. 那家饭店价格不公道。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

11 billboard   

n.布告板，揭示栏，广告牌

参考例句：

• He ploughed his energies into his father's billboard business.他把精力投入到父亲的广告牌业务中。
• Billboard spreads will be simpler and more eye-catching.广告牌广告会比较简单且更引人注目。

12 billboards   

n.广告牌( billboard的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Large billboards have disfigured the scenery. 大型告示板已破坏了景色。 来自辞典例句
• Then, put the logo in magazines and on billboards without telling anyone what it means. 接着我们把这个商标刊在杂志和广告看板上，却不跟任何人透漏它的涵意。 来自常春藤生活英语杂志-2006年4月号

13 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

14 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

15 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

16 analyze   

vt.分析，解析 (=analyse)

参考例句：

• We should analyze the cause and effect of this event.我们应该分析这场事变的因果。
• The teacher tried to analyze the cause of our failure.老师设法分析我们失败的原因。