Amy L. Fairchild is a professor of sociomedical sciences at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.

Banana Nut Bread. Crème Brûlée. Dragon Fruit. Bubble Gum. These are some of the liquid nicotine flavors available in vaporizer and e-cigarette shops across the country. If only my children were willing to experience such sophisticated tastes. Despite their sensory appeal and what anti-smoking critics say, the flavors alone don't represent evidence that children are the target. Current smokers, whether teenagers or adults, are already the ones most easily lured by e-cigarettes. Flavors are central to that. If there is to be a future for e-cigarettes, it is critical not to limit their potential to seriously challenge traditional cigarettes.

Since the early 1980s, the majority of anti-tobacco crusaders have struck a kind of neo-temperance pose. Despite solid evidence that smokeless tobacco products like snus, while not risk free, are significantly less hazardous than tobacco cigarettes, the “cessation-only” approach has framed all tobacco products as equally dangerous. The same has been done to e-cigarettes, where the evidence is hotly contested.

In calling its proposed new rules “foundational,” the F.D.A. does not exactly do a sharp about-face. But, remarkably, they acknowledge the prevailing scientific uncertainty and try to draft a flexible approach that resists the temptation of simply banning everything until we are sure. By keeping the door open to exotic aromas, taste sensations and to television advertising — some of which portray cigarette smoking as a dirty, dangerous habit — it leaves e-cigarettes in a position to outstrip tobacco cigarettes in popularity and market share.

This show of initial restraint on the part of the F.D.A. has left strong e-cigarette opponents fuming. Some e-cigarette advocates see the potential to engineer harm reduction, an approach that aims to reduce rather than eliminate the existing risks. As more research on e-cigarettes is conducted, the final regulatory blueprint might take different forms. But by refraining from prohibiting flavors and advertising, the F.D.A. at least has set the stage for a more tolerant approach to tobacco control.



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