Last month, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey filed a lawsuit against e-cigarette and vape pen retailer Eonsmoke LLC, alleging that the company violated state laws by advertising their products to youths and teenagers on social media.

Eonsmoke Lawsuit

According to the lawsuit, Eonsmoke markets their flavored nicotine e-liquid products on social media platforms using memes and other forms of communication meant to appeal to teenagers. In one marketing post cited by the lawsuit, Eonsmoke posted a photo of one of their vape pens with a bag of candy. The lawsuit also claims that Eonsmoke produces nicotine flavors meant to appeal to youths, including sour gummy and cereal loops.

Additionally, AG Healey claims that the company illegally sold nicotine products to minors from 2015 to 2018 and did not verify the ages of its purchasers. She is seeking to prevent the company from continuing to engage in deceptive marketing practices targeting minors, as well as seeking penalties against Eonsmoke.

Health Hazards of Vaping for Teens

While marketing nicotine products to teenagers and minors is illegal, as well as unethical, it may also be dangerous. Research suggests that exposure to nicotine at a young age, while the brain is still developing, may lead to serious future health concerns. Although the percentage of teens who smoke traditional cigarettes has plateaued, use of e-cigarettes and vape pens has increased by almost 80 percent since 2017, according to a U.S. Surgeon General advisory released in 2018. It is estimated that 1 in every 5 high school students uses e-cigarettes. These students may not be fully aware of the health hazards of vaping. According to the Eonsmoke lawsuit, many youth users may be under the impression that they are smoking nicotine-free flavored vapor.

These devices may have long lasting consequences for youth users. Nicotine changes the way that synapses are formed in the brain, which can harm the parts of the brain responsible for attention, concentration, and learning. The brain is still growing and developing until around age 25. Nicotine use before the brain is fully developed may permanently change the way the brain develops and functions.

Youths and teenagers who begin smoking vape pens and e-cigarettes as minors are at a high risk for developing mood disorders, suffering the permanent lowering of impulse control, and developing an addiction to nicotine. Minors who use nicotine are at a higher risk of developing an addiction to the substance than users who begin to smoke as adults.

If your child has suffered from the consequences or health hazards of vaping, help may be available. Taking legal action against vape pen and e-cigarette retailers who market these harmful devices to children and teenagers may result in compensation for victims.

The Eonsmoke Lawsuit is Case No. 1984CV01728, in the Suffolk County Superior Court of Massachusetts.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.