FDA reveals bigger, graphic warning labels for cigarette packages

FDA reveals bigger, graphic warning labels for cigarette packages

www.cnn.com

Washington (CNN) -- Nine new graphic cigarette warning labels were unveiled Tuesday by the Food and Drug Administration, part of the agency's sweeping new powers to regulate tobacco and tobacco products.
Cigarette packages will now carry one vivid color image and one of these warnings about the consequences of smoking: "Cigarettes are addictive"; "Tobacco smoke can harm your children"; "Cigarettes cause fatal lung disease"; "Cigarettes cause cancer"; "Cigarettes cause strokes and heart disease"; "Smoking during pregnancy can harm your baby"; "Smoking can kill you"; "Tobacco sm

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I have heard this was going to happen for awhile now and alas it has begun. Though I wonder if it will really cause people to quit.

I am not going to quit just because of a picture on the package, and I know many others who will not as well. One can either not look at it or cover it up, plain and simple. I do think it has the possibility of stopping new people from trying it and I think that is a good thing.

Now I know this has already been placed on cigarette packages in other countries, so I would especially like their opinion. If they have seen a difference since it's implication in their countries or if there has been no difference in the amount of people smoking.
Thoughts?

(P.S. I wish I could quit, but in times like these it's hard not to want a smoke, in fact I think I am going to go out and have one now, lmao)

www.cnn.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

Sorry to the mods for the accidental 3 thread post there.
Computer glitch for sure,

I think your right about the size of the label having very little effect on whether people smoke or not. From what i've see most smokers started in highschool and between peer pressure and not careing they ignore these warnings. Once your a regular smoker it really is hard as hell to quit, but larger warning labels won't hurt anything.

smokers are a big milking cow for government, that's why they just make it more expensive instead of forbid it.

Imagine how the population would grow without smokers.

How much food we could grow instead of tobacco.

I don't smoke and I personally find it disgusting but the only issue I have with this is that they are forcing cigarette companies to tarnish their brands with disgusting photos, but they aren't forcing alcohol companies to post emaciated liver photos, car crash photos and the like... they aren't forcing soda manufacturers to add photos of people who've lost limbs due to diabetes, or who've gained hundreds of pounds due to abusing sugary products..

Seems a bit odd..

reply to post by lokdog


Exactly, some images on the package are not going to change what has been ingrained in them. It is a terrible addiction that is harder to quit then most things out there. Some pictures will not change anything, like the commercials that are on television.

I do think it is possible that it might help those who have not started smoking, turn away from the idea to start. One can hope I guess.

reply to post by Grey Magic


I definitely agree with you here. It does indeed make a lot of money for the government and is definitely the reason why it is legal, when it is worse than other things out there.
They make it more expensive and put less tobacco and more chemicals in it all the time.
It would indeed be a better, healthier world without it.

reply to post by miniatus


I am glad that you do not smoke, you are a better man than I. It is a nasty habit and one I have been struggling to quit for awhile now. One day hopefully, I will be successful at kicking it.

You do bring up an interesting point on why they are forcing tobacco companies to do this, and not alcohol companies and others. It is very odd and I wonder why.
Anyone have any theories on why?

reply to post by theUNKNOWNawaits


Especially since there is growing evidence and support for the idea that sugar is one of the biggest scourges out there right now.. especially HFCS ( high fructose corn syrup ) .. there's strong evidence behind the idea that high sugar / carb diets can lead to heart disease and less support that cholesterol causes it.. We already know sugary diets can lead to obesity and diabetes as well .. There's a good chance that Sugar leads to more health problems overall than Cigarettes... but those guys are still allowed to market freely and target children heavily.. HFCS is in most things you eat and it's the worst form .. Childhood obesity is a bigger problem now than it has ever been, that's a serious health risk and it gets largely ignored.

reply to post by theUNKNOWNawaits


Ha when I was in Italy and even the London airport all their cigarette packs said "SMOKING KILLS" is huge black letters in a white band around the pack. I actually bought Marlboro Lights in Italy just so I could have that pack.

It makes me laugh in a sense how they are always like "smoking kills" and all their negative adds for what it does yet it's still legal and other things are illegal. If it's so dangerous why is it legal then?!

Originally posted by mblahnikluver
reply to post by theUNKNOWNawaits

 

Ha when I was in Italy and even the London airport all their cigarette packs said "SMOKING KILLS" is huge black letters in a white band around the pack. I actually bought Marlboro Lights in Italy just so I could have that pack.

It makes me laugh in a sense how they are always like "smoking kills" and all their negative adds for what it does yet it's still legal and other things are illegal. If it's so dangerous why is it legal then?!

Because it's a big source if income to the government, same reason they tax alcohol ... Funny, I know of some things that are illegal and much safer.. I suspect in 5-10 years time though that it will also be legal and taxed to high heaven.. and that's a liberal estimate, could be much sooner.

reply to post by mblahnikluver


Money makes the world go round.

Simple and sad at the same time. It should not be a good reason for having something like this legal, yet it is the only reason.

reply to post by miniatus


Agreed the sugar problem is one that is rising and definitely needs to be looked at.
It is being ignored though for money reasons, yet again. It sells and that is the bottom line in the world today.
As long as the money rolls in they will be happy.
I also think what you are talking about will happen sooner than 5-10 years, because they will be able to make a ton of money off of it. Though we shall see in due time.

Here in Canada, it's been like this for a few years now. Nasty pictures of teeth, lungs, and various other images along with some stats meant to deter people from smoking. Has it worked? Not really. In the beginning, you will see some new products out to mask these images - like a plain or designer sleeve to slip over your pack of cigarettes to cover the revolting images - or people will just transfer them to a tin case. But that won't last long as people get used to it. Then they'll carry on as before, only with the ugly pack showing.

Like I said earlier, all it did was paint gross pictures all over cigarette boxes. I can't say it has stopped anyone I know from slowing or halting the practice at all.

Well I'm a smoker and I find this whole idea to be very very dumb. I do think there should be a warning out there to inform the user that the product can cause cancer, emphysema, heart disease, etc. However I do not think pictures of decaying teeth or tared up lungs is going to stop people from smoking. Hell I have already heard some of my smoker friends say they cant wait because they want to "collect them all".

Simple education and information is all thats needed, not grotesque images.

I wonder if they will start putting pictures of insanely obese people or people with diabetes on McDonald's Burger wrappers.

reply to post by theUNKNOWNawaits


we already have them in Thailand and they are pretty gross, they use pictures of people's cancer. there is one of a tumor on a ladies face that looks like a huge omelet , and another one with a dude with a hole in his through, another one looks like a rotting foot. it's pretty good discouragement

I'm slowly getting more pissed at all the stuff they do to smokers. When I started smoking on the east coast, I could get cigs at $3 for a pack of malburo 100's. Now it is $7 in California with the recent tax. I'm looking into alternatives like E-cigs or getting a packing machine to make cigs. Or just ordering a bunch on ebay lol.
And now they're going to do this. We have a warning label. I dont want to look at any pictures besides the logo. #in FDA.

reply to post by miniatus


I would have to agree with you there.

I find it extremely hypocritical that Alcohol is totally off the hook with regards to health concerns.

Nobody says smoking is good, but alcohol is also very dangerous. I think it's only fair for bottles of alcohol to have big pictures of fatty livers, or corpses that died from alcohol poisoning.

I don't think these pictures are going to do a damn thing, and they know it. They get too much money from smokers, so they want to LOOK like they are actually trying to stop people from smoking, but without actually doing it.

As for all the anti-smoking people out there, if you ever get your wish and tobacco is illegal, just wait a few years. You can be sure the government will come after something you enjoy and start taxing the hell out of it to make up for the lost money.

reply to post by hhcore


Did not even think about sleeves or tin cases. Perhaps they did it, knowing people would buy sleeves and tin cases, to make more money that way.

reply to post by Openeye


Haha

Did not even think of that, but now I probably will try to collect them all.

And they should put them on other things like burger wrappers. Why one thing that can cause harm to our bodies and not another?

reply to post by emptyOmind


It may be good discouragement to those who have not started smoking, yet I do doubt that it will help people quit. People will quit when they are ready, no picture I think will help, when the commercials already out are not helping people quit so far.

reply to post by furzball


I feel your'e pain.

My Newports are almost $8 out here in California. At least it is better than the almost $10 I was paying to get them while I was in New Jersey.

Not that big a fan of the E-Cig, but I feel getting a packing machine to make your own cigarettes is the best way to go. Definitely will save you a ton of money.

reply to post by James1982


Great point. They want to look like they are doing something, when they know in fact it will do nothing.

I do doubt it will ever be illegal though, as it would be a huge loss to the government money wise and would be hard to make up elsewhere.

You're going to die anyways so what's difference if you go sooner rather than later? Since when is it the government's job to "take care of us", effectively doing the adult equivalent telling you to eat your veggies and lay back on the candy?

We've had them here in the U.K and the North of Ireland for a while now and I can honestly say that it hasn't put anyone off. I know this as I work in a petrol station which sells a lot of tobacco and the only comments that I have heard from people is "Can you give me a packet that doesn't show the fellas teeth" or "That picture of that fellas tumour makes me sick, can you get me a different packet?"

Ever since the prices have sharply risen, I have seen people put less fuel into their car simply so they can buy more cigarettes. If the governments cared more for the citizens health and not the bags of money they make they would be even harder to buy or even made illegal. The pictures are nothing but a waste of time.