VIDEO – YOUTH MARKET –
May 12, 2025 – Every year Alternative Products Expos happen at convention centers across the U.S., showcasing smoke shop wares from tobaccos and vapes to accessories and CBDs. Earlier this year, we attended one in Miami, where hundreds of flavored vapes, illegal under federal law, were openly displayed and sold. Now, there are new questions about why federal agencies are failing to take action.
For Maryland mom, Donna Bartlett, there was an unforgettable moment of realization.
“He was literally punching his dresser and so angry because he couldn’t understand why he couldn’t stop,” she said. “He was just crying, ‘I wish I had never started this.’”
Her 15-year-old son wasn’t addicted to a hard drug like cocaine or heroin. He was hooked on a vibrant, whimsically flavored product that looks like something you’d buy at a candy store: a nicotine vape in his favorite flavor, cherry.
