San Francisco bans the sale of e-cigarettes

San Francisco is to ban the sale of e-cigarettes because of increasing use of the nicotine devices by teenagers.

The ban on sale and distribution will begin next year and remain in place until e-cigarettes are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera said the ban was the right thing to do.

He told CNN: ‘This is a decisive step to help prevent another generation of San Francisco children from becoming addicted to nicotine.’

#’This lack of clarity is causing tremendous confusion at the same time that a whole new generation of young people are getting addicted to nicotine.

‘The explosion in youth use and the health risks to young people are undeniable.’

E-cigarettes are generally thought to be safer than traditional cigarettes which kill up to half of all lifetime users.

Public Health England says they are 95% less harmful than smoking tobacco.

However this has been disputed by some experts who say the long-term effects of e-cigarettes have yet to be evaluated.