Americans see e-cigarettes as better than cigarettes, but still harmful overall, according to a new Gallup survey.
Almost everyone—96% of those surveyed—said cigarettes are at least somewhat harmful to the people who use them, including 82% who said they’re “very harmful.”
By contrast, 38% said vaping is very harmful, and another 35% said the practice is somewhat harmful.
Marijuana was seen as the safest of all, with just 27% saying it’s very harmful. The poll was taken July 1-11 of 1,033 adults.
The Food and Drug Administration, kind of like the public overall, is still sorting out exactly how it feels about vaping, at the same time as rates of teens and young adults who do it continues to rise and tobacco companies profit.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than 10% of high school students vape. The FDA has said e-cigarettes have promise as a safer alternative for people who smoke cigarettes, but has also raised questions about product offerings and marketing practices that appear targeted toward children.
The popular e-cigarette brand Juul Labs is under investigation by the Massachusetts attorney general, who is concerned the company is targeting minors, CNN reports. The company offers its nicotine cartridges, which contain as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes, in flavors like fruit medley and mango. And its rechargeable smoking devices, which resemble a flash drive, come in colorful “skins.”
