A South Bay city is looking to end the sale of all flavored tobacco in the effort of staving children and teens off trying fruity or tempting flavors.
In a Tuesday night council meeting, Redondo Beach voted to introduce legislation to end the sale of flavored tobacco, including menthol, at most retailers.
"Candy flavors like mint, gummy bear and chocolate prevent youth from realizing how dangerous these products really are and put young people at risk for nicotine addiction," President of the Southern California American Academy of Pediatrics Dr. Alice Kuo said in a statement.
She also said that four out of five kids who try tobacco will begin with a flavored product.
In June, San Francisco became the first major U.S. city to ban electronic cigarettes.
Michigan became the first state to ban flavored e-cigarettes Wednesday.
Government survey results show one in five U.S. high school students said they had vaped in the previous month, leading government health officials to call it a health epidemic.
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In August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FDA warned users to avoid buying vaping products off the street.
The agencies were also investigating 215 cases across 25 states of users who puffed on e-cigarettes or vaping devices and ended up with breathing ailments. Symptoms included coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain, fatigue, nausea and vomiting.
