In an almost 500-page report issued Thursday, U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials said young people using e-cigarettes are a growing problem. But for some, it’s seen as a way to kick addiction.

  • New FDA regulations will govern what goes into e-cigarettes
  • Consumers now must be 18 and show ID to buy e-cigarettes

Shane Shovan wanted to quit smoking cigarettes. So he did what millions of others are doing: He bought an e-cigarette.

“It's definitely better for your body,” Shovan said. “I'd say it still takes a self will to get yourself away from the act of smoking, but I'd say it's a good substitute for any cravings you might have.”

It’s the same reason Raven Lee says she bought her 17-year-old sister her first e-cigarette.

“My sister vapes, and I actually bought my sister her first vape because she was smoking, and I didn't want her to smoke anymore. So I told her that I would buy her a vape if she wouldn't smoke,” Lee said.

FDA officials want to put a stop to young people using e-cigarettes. They’re now going to require consumers to be at least 18 and show photo identification before they purchase an e-cigarette.

Another big change the FDA is calling for is the regulation of what goes into e-cigarettes, which usually contain liquid nicotine, or “juices,” as many call them.

Tasso Nikolov works at Vapor Road in Pinellas County and says the restrictions could be a good thing.

“It's a great idea. People who mix their own juices don't necessarily always look up everything they're putting in there,” he said. “Because of how popular vaping has gotten, everyone's gotten so excited about being able to produce anything that they want, to the point where they gloss over and skip the facts.”

Nikolov says that mixing could end up doing more harm than good. It's why the FDA will now require companies who mix their own e-cigarette juices to get them approved by the agency with detailed lists of ingredients. It’s something that could potentially reduce risk factors.

“The problems with homemade juices or juices mixed in-house could range anywhere from just burning out a device too quickly or giving somebody a respiratory infection and even damaging the respiratory system, which on that level it's doing the opposite of what it was intended to do,” Nikolov said.

The new regulations will go into effect in the next 90 days. Smoke shop owners in the Tampa Bay area say they plan to comb through the 499 pages to see exactly how this will affect their businesses.