The British website thegrocer published an article mocking the recent ban on the sale of Juul e-cigarettes in the United States. The following is the full text.

A country with few regulations restricting the use of the AR-15, a gun capable of firing 45 rounds per minute at civilians and schoolchildren, but some vaping devices do not have the data needed to determine the relevant health risks There are market denial orders, which Meaning they have to be taken off the shelves immediately.

That happened with Juul, which was ordered last week by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to stop selling and distributing its Juul devices and four types of pods. The order has been temporarily suspended after Juul sought a stay pending an appeal.

"We strongly disagree," said Joe Murillo, chief regulatory officer at Juul Labs, of the FDA's move. He added that the data provided, along with all the evidence, met statutory standards.

The United States' seemingly tough stance on vaping contrasts sharply with the United Kingdom, which declared vaping as an effective smoking cessation tool in Khan's comments earlier this month.

"Governments must promote e-cigarettes as an effective tool to help people quit smoking," Dr Javed Khan wrote in the report. "We know that vaping is not a panacea, nor is it completely risk-free, but the alternative is much worse."

In fact, the government here is looking to expedite the path to regulated vaping. There was even talk of a well-designed mass media campaign to help create a smoke-free culture.

It was some sensible regulations in the past that have now given the UK a tangible understanding of what vaping can do. Likewise, the relative lack of rules in the U.S. means the FDA must now take drastic measures.

In the UK, for example, the maximum nicotine content for vaping products is 20mg/ml – while the US has no such cap. The UK also has stricter regulations on advertising of e-cigarettes (there are hardly any), and the few allowed must be socially responsible and not aimed at children. Likewise, in the US, virtually no advertising restrictions apply to any media channel.

result? The nicotine content of single-use e-cigarettes sold in the U.S. rose nearly 60 percent from an average of 25 mg/mL in 2015 to 39.5 mg/mL in 2018. Ad spending by e-cigarette brands tripled.

It enables brands like Juul to effectively advertise to teens, only to be held back by individual state intervention and public/media outrage.

The storm sparked by regulation has led to moves to ban all non-tobacco e-cigarette flavors, and the American Medical Association in 2019 called for a blanket ban on all vaping products.

Here, public health agencies believe that e-cigarettes are 95% less harmful than tobacco.

A more regulated UK environment allows for more innovation, a weaker black market, and, crucially, a greater chance of someday eradicating combustible cigarettes (although 14.5% of UK 16-year-olds and over say they are currently in 2020 last cigarette, and the U.S. rate is 12.5%).

In addition, the industry in the UK appears to place a greater emphasis on self-regulation – through supply chain charters, the Stop Rogue Trader Initiative and a good faith effort to stop underage sales.

As with guns, being smarter from the start is now paying off.