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1. Consumer Health Information
www.fda.gov/consumer
powerful depictions of the health
FDA Unveils
risks of smoking and they will help
encourage smokers to quit, and pre-
vent children from smoking,” said
Health and Human Services Secre-
tary Kathleen Sebelius.
New Cigarette Nine Warnings
I n Nove mb e r, F DA of f ic ia l s
posted 36 images on the Internet
Health Warnings
(www.fda.gov/tobacco) and gave the
public 90 days to comment. The
agency received more than 1,700
comments from the public, retail-
ers, health professionals, advocacy
C
groups, the tobacco industry, state
onsumers are getting a glimpse of warnings images that will be and local public health agencies,
alternating on all cigarette packages and advertisements within and others.
Regulators used the comments,
15 months—an effort by health officials to discourage smoking
scientific literature, and the results
by bringing Americans face to face with tobacco-related disease. of an 18,000-person study to nar-
row the images to nine. Each of
the images—a mix of illustrations
and photos depicting the negative
health consequences of smoking—
will be paired with one of these nine
printed warnings:
addictive—with an image of a
man smoking through a hole in
his throat
harm your children—with an
image of a parent holding a baby
as smoke drifts towards them
lung disease—with an image
of a disease-riddled lung and a
healthy lung
cancer—with an image of an open
sore and stained teeth on the
lips and mouth of a smoker with
mouth cancer
Federal regulators unveiled nine graphic warnings that must be on cigarette
packaging and advertisements by September 2012. The warning above shows
strokes and heart disease—with
healthy lungs (left) and the diseased lungs of a smoker.
an image of a man who needs an
oxygen mask to breathe
The Food and Drug Administration must appear on every cigarette pack,
unveiled the nine, color images— carton, and advertisement by Sep- pregnancy can harm your baby—
including some of bodies ravaged by tember 2012. with an illustration of a crying
disease—at a news conference. The “President Obama is commit- newborn in an incubator and
images, which are paired with text ted to protecting our nation’s chil- hooked-up to a monitor
health warnings, are required under dren and t he A mer ican people
the 2009 Family Smoking Preven- from the dangers of tobacco use. you—with the image of a dead
tion and Tobacco Control Act. They These labels are frank, honest and man with a surgery-scarred chest
1 / FDA Consumer Health Information / U.S. Food and Drug Administration J U N E 2 0 11

2. Consumer Health Information
www.fda.gov/consumer
“These labels are frank, honest and powerful
depictions of the health risks of smoking…”
“The Tobacco Control Act requires responsible for 443,000 deaths each
causes fatal lung disease in FDA to provide current and potential
nonsmokers—with an image of a smokers with clear and truthful infor- economy nearly $200 billion every
grieving family member mation about the risks of smoking— year in medical costs and lost pro-
these warnings do that,” she says. ductivity.
now greatly reduces serious risks The bold health warnings will
to your health—with an image of cover t he top 50 percent of t he
front and rear panels of all cigarette Find this and other Consumer
packages and at least 20 percent Updates at www.fda.gov/
Expected Impact of each adver tisement. They are ForConsumers/ConsumerUpdates
FDA Commissioner Margaret A. expected to decrease the number
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Hamburg, M.D., says she’s hopeful of smokers, save lives and increase
subscriptions at www.fda.gov/
the graphic images will give smok- life expectancy.
consumer/consumerenews.html
ers the incentive to quit and prevent For more information, visit www.
potential smokers from ever start- fda.gov/cigarettewarnings.
ing. In fact, the phone number for The Centers for Disease Control
the smoking cessation hotline—1- and Prevention says tobacco use is the
leading cause of premature and pre-
each warning.
2 / FDA Consumer Health Information / U.S. Food and Drug Administration J U N E 2 0 11