Lets explore @FDATobacco infographics. These data come from @CDCTobaccoFree's National Youth Tobacco Survey.
US teen nicotine vaping increased in 2018 (to twice what it is today), so FDA's infographic focused on the percentage increase. @DrWoodcockFDA
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(2) In 2019, US teen vaping increased again, but it's not clear WHAT they were vaping. @CDCTobaccoFree forgot to ask that in 2019, so much of this "increase" may be THC vaping, not nicotine.
This time there's a graph, huge letters saying "ALARMING," and an absolute number.
(3) By 2020, US teen vaping had dropped 29%. This was before the pandemic hit (before schools closed).
@FDATobacco admits teen vaping dropped 1.8 million.
Daily use is obscured by hiding it under "current use." It's actually only 4.4%.
Oh. But "disposables SURGED!"
(4) It's 2021. @CDCTobaccoFree just published a #COVID19 update. The 2020 survey found a 29% drop. Between 2020 and 2021, teen vaping dropped another 42%. Teen vaping just dropped 62% in two years. Here is the @FDATobacco infographic.
(5) Now lets dissect this new @FDATobacco infographic on teen vaping. Does it tell the public teen vaping just dropped 62%? No.
Does it do something dodgy with daily use? Yes. So dodgy it confused @US_FDA's own Comms Team, journalists and Members of the US Congress.
(6) So, now let's put this all together for 2019 (the peak of the teen vaping fad), 2020 and 2021. You can't miss it: Yup... That's a 62% drop in just two years.
Because of the way @FDATobacco (mis)communicated this, NOT ONE MAINSTREAM JOURNALIST HAS REPORTED IT. Strange no?
(7) OK, but there are still 2 million teens vaping, and I agree that's too many. But are 2 million kids "addicted," as most Americans assume? No.
Let's get some perspective: 89% don't vape. 6% vape infrequently, so are not 'hooked.' 4.9% vape frequently. 3.1% vape daily.
(8) If we truly cared about teen dependence, we would focus on daily use (most teen daily vapers smoked first but let's ignore that).
If we did that though, it would be impossible to portray this as a crisis. So govt officials only show the public "current use" (≥ once/month).
(9) So... How does this all look if we put the inflated "current use" numbers together with daily use, and see how teen vaping changed over time? And what if we add some of the other things teens-should-not-do just to get some perspective? (e.g., drinking, pot, illicit drugs)
(10) OK, now let's invert this whole thing using the same data to look at the number of teens who don't vape at all, and how that has changed since 2014.
Note that more US teens vaped nicotine in 2014 than today.
(11) And, worth noting here that US teen smoking has dropped (coincidentally) far faster than historical trends over the past 10 years. Lowest in history now.
This means US total teen nicotine use (smoking+vaping) is now less than half what it was just 20 years ago.
(12) Finally: The elephant in the room. Propaganda has convinced many Americans (including politicians) that the only reason nicotine vapes exist is to lure teens into a lifetime of the dreaded horror of nicotine addiction.
Americans are profoundly wrong about a lot of things.
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(2) "Middle school use is up."
#FactCheck: MISLEADING. Middle & high school nicotine vaping dropped 61% over the past 4 years. 1.9% of teens vape nicotine daily, so may be 'hooked' (down >50% in the past 4 years).
Consider "the Standard Narrative" *pushed* by tobacco control:
• Whole new generation addicted to nicotine
• E-cigarettes are a gateway to smoking
• Ecig use increased exponentially, especially among teens
• They target teens
• Nicotine harms developing brains
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(1a) Where is this "whole new generation addicted to nicotine"?
In the USA, teen nicotine USE is lower today than at any time in the past 50 years.
#FactCheckMe: @CDCgov and @NIH survey data
(1b) Where is this "whole new generation "addicted" to nicotine"?
The above numbers do not measure "addiction." For that, we need to look at frequent and daily use.
#FactCheckMe: @CDCgov survey data
Daily Brain Harm News
15 past-Presidents of the top professional society in tobacco control call "nicotine brain harm" claims "speculative" because there is no human evidence.
Yet @CDCgov continues to tell the public "nicotine harms developing brains" is a known fact.
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(2) How do we sort that all out? First, we should consider what actually can, tragically, cause permanent life-long harm to developing brains.
- under-nutrition
- toxic stress factors (neglect, abuse, loss of parents,
and exposure to violence)
(3) Next, we should consider the evidence "nicotine harms developing brains":
Young rats have subtle reversible brain changes (not necessarily harms) that are comparable to changes caused by caffeine.
This is the evidence used to claim nicotine is a "brain poison."