FDA backs down on 'e-cigarettes'

WASHINGTON, April 26 (UPI) -- The U.S. Federal Drug Administration says it won't fight a ruling that electronic cigarettes will not be regulated as a drug delivery device.

The FDA had sought such regulation but an appeals court ruled in December that as long as electronic cigarettes aren't marketed as therapeutic devices, they can't be regulated like them, CBS News reported Tuesday.

The FDA said in a statement it would not oppose the ruling and will focus instead on providing guidance for the industry.

Electronic cigarettes are plastic and metal devices in which a liquid nicotine solution in a disposable cartridge is heated, creating vapor that is inhaled by the "smoker."

The so-called "e-cigarettes" are consider by many smokers a healthier way to wean themselves from the habit. U.S. consumers spent $1.2 billion on smoking cessation products last year, CBS reported.