Graham lecturer explains roadmap, challenges of tobacco regulation

One of the first examples of federal tobacco regulation emerged in the 1960s, when Congress passed the Federal Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act that required manufacturers to place health warning labels on cigarette packages.

Since then, tobacco regulation has continued to expand through legislation such as the 2009 Tobacco Control Act, which gave the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the ability to regulate the tobacco industry through the Center for Tobacco Products (CTP).

Brian King, PhD '10, MPH '06, director of the Center for Tobacco Products, focused the 16th annual Saxon Graham Lecture, “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Tobacco Product Regulation: Promise and Peril in an Increasingly Complex Landscape,” on his roadmap to successful tobacco regulation and the challenges he faces at the center’s helm.

One challenge King noted is the ever-changing landscape of tobacco products. While cigarettes continue to be the most used tobacco product among adults, e-cigarettes are the leading tobacco product in youth, with almost one in 10 using these products.

“There are a lot of different products out there. Our challenge as researchers is making sure we’re nimble and mindful of everything that’s out there, but also making sure that we have the data to help inform the work that we’re doing,” he said.

The center relies on social media intelligence, retail sales data, internet panel surveys and more to stay up to date on the tobacco environment in the country. King noted that while gathering evidence is important, clear communication of that information is a key component of tobacco regulation’s roadmap to success.

“My key job is to make sure we take the science and translate it into practice in a way that is actually going to help people,” he said.

King has worked for nearly 20 years to provide thorough scientific evidence to inform tobacco control policy and to successfully communicate this information to key stakeholders like the media, governmental officials and the public. Before joining the FDA, King worked as deputy director for research translation in the CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health, and was executive editor of the CDC’s Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report series.

The Saxon Graham Lectureship honors the life and legacy of the man known as one of the fathers of U.S. chronic disease epidemiology. A member of the Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health for more than three decades, L. Saxon Graham served as chair from 1981-91. The annual lecture features a distinguished speaker in epidemiology.