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Source: The Wisconsin State JournalDec.迷你倉 28--They come in flavors including bubble gum, chocolate and cookie dough. In some cases, the shiny, brightly colored packaging makes them look like candy. They're sometimes even found in the candy aisle.Teenagers who won't pay $6 to $8 for a pack of cigarettes might be tempted to fork over 99 cents to try a flavored little cigar or a cigarillo.That combination of factors, say anti-smoking advocates, is what makes them so dangerous, especially to teenagers.Health groups in Wisconsin and nationwide are pushing for more taxes and restrictions on flavored little cigars and cigarillos, which are exempt from the types of regulation applied to cigarettes because of their different size and makeup."This is how the tobacco industry is using candy flavors and packaging and marketing to spread their products," said Luke Witkowski, who runs FACT, Wisconsin's youth-tobacco prevention program.And even though they look innocuous, Witkowski said little cigars and cigarillos have the same chance as cigarettes of hooking a young person on a lifetime of smoking. The group, which has 5,000 student members across Wisconsin, has labeled its anti-cigar campaign "Manipulicious.""The addiction is still there," Witkowski said. "The nicotine is still in it."Over the past decade, smoking among young people has declined, thanks in part to aggressive public education campaigns and an overall decrease in smoking among adults.But for the first time, small sweet-flavored cigars and cigarillos -- which are not only less regulated than cigarettes but also less taxed -- have become the smoke of choice for Wisconsin's high school students.Results of the statewide 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey show that 14.6 percent of Wisconsin high school students who smoked one or more days in a month used cigarettes, versus 14.8 percent who reported smoking little cigars or cigarillos, according to Brenda Jennings, a consultant for alcohol, tobacco and other drugs for the state Department of Public Instruction.Not only are such cigars more attractive to young people, the National Cancer Institute says these tobacco-wrapped smokes also have higher levels of cancer-causing substances, including tar, and a higher level of toxins than cigarettes.The Food and Drug Administration is considering regulating these smaller cigars the same as cigarettes, smokeless tobacco and roll-your-own tobacco, which would among other things require disclosure of their ingredients. The FDA has no control over little brown cigars.David Sutton, spokesman for Altria Client Services, whose company, John Middleton Co., makes cigarillos, said his company has no objection to FDA regulation."We think it (regulation) is important," Sutton said. "We think it will bring a lot -- already has brought a lot to the cigarette and smokeless tobacco products. We have supported FDA regulation and continue to do so."Taxes less on little cigarsOver the years, states and the federal government have continued to raise taxes on cigarettes but not other smokedmini storagetobacco products such as little cigars and cigarillos, according to the American Lung Association."This has led to a surge in the consumption of certain cheaper tobacco products, including flavored cigars that are popular among already vulnerable populations," including young people and the poor, the association said.In Wisconsin, a bill sponsored by state Rep. Garey Bies, R-Sister Bay, and Sen. Nikiya Harris, D-Milwaukee, seeks to tax little cigars and cigarillos the same as cigarettes, closing what some have labeled a "tobacco tax loophole."Assembly Bill 481 would boost the tax on cigarettes from 71 percent of the manufacturer's list price to distributors to 84 percent and would eliminate the current maximum 50-cent per cigar tax.Under the bill, a package of 20 little cigars would be taxed at the same rate as a 20-pack of cigarettes -- currently $2.52 -- and at a proportionate rate for any other quantity.Sutton said his company does not oppose raising taxes on little cigars -- which he said have the same size, shape and filters as cigarettes. But Altria opposes higher taxes on cigarillos, such as the Black & Mild cigar brands manufactured by John Middleton, he said.He added that raising the state's 71 percent tax to 84 percent would be a large tax increase."It's already a hefty tax," Sutton said, "so we're opposed to it."The measure also would require that retailers place little cigars and other tobacco products in a location that is inaccessible to customers without assistance."There are instances we've heard of where they're displayed right next to candy," said Laura Smith, spokeswoman for Health First Wisconsin, which supports the bill.Sutton said his company already requires retailers to sell its product from behind the counter so clerks can verify buyers are of legal age.Bies said he sponsored the bill in part because he's seen the damage that a lifetime of tobacco use can cause. He said his father died from cancer after years of chewing tobacco."(Young people) haven't really hit an age where they can make a good decision for themselves," Bies told WisconsinEye last month. "To me, it's very obvious they're targeting a younger audience, get them introduced to it so they produce more customers in the future."Four years ago, the federal government banned the use of flavoring in cigarettes except for menthol to discourage smoking among young people. That has created demand, especially among teenagers, for flavored little cigars and cigarillos, the lung association said.Earlier this month, the Chicago City Council passed a ban on smoking flavored tobacco within 500 feet of a school to discourage smoking of flavored little cigars and cigarillos by young people.But Sutton said cigar smokers have sought flavored tobacco since the late 1800s.John Middleton's cigarillos, he insisted, are targeted at adult smokers.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wis.) Visit The Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wis.) at .wisconsinstatejournal.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesself storage