WWE's Hulk Hogan and former boxer Mike Tyson have been slammed after promoting e-cigarettes that get young people "hooked".
The sporting legends have both advertised the flavoured nicotine products via their respective brands Immortal by Hulk Hogan and Tyson 2.0 over the past year, the New York Post reports.
The vapes were branded with colourful packaging and exciting designs and have a variety of sweet and fruit flavours including apple gummies, strawberry shortcake and cotton candy, which critics say appeal to a younger audience.
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"Flavour hooks kids on these products," said Meredith Berkman, cofounder of the US-based advocacy group Parents Against Vaping e-cigarettes.
Berkman added it was "disheartening" to see the two athletes using "their likeness to market flavoured poison."
Meanwhile Jim Carroll, former director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy under ex-President Donald Trump, added: "For so-called celebrities to be promoting products that are dangerous for kids is a sad day."
A google search for Tyson-branded e-cigarettes brings up the website VapeTyson, which bears the catchy slogan: "Tyson vapes: the ultimate choice for champions."
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The header is followed by text reading: "Vapes that pack a punch created by The Baddest Man on The Planet," accompanied by a bright red button that says "Shop now".
Next to the messaging are snaps of the packaging, which features Tyson's face on different coloured backgrounds, as well as a black vape with red writing displaying the sports icon's logo and the word "Heavyweight".
Meanwhile the website advertising Immortal by Hulk Hogan declares: "Coming soon, brother! Don't miss out," followed by a box where visitors to the site can enter their email address for updates.
"What's on the way?" the colourful website continues, before listing: "Flower; vapes; cartridges; pre-rolls; kratom capsules; shots."
Mocked-up images of Hogan's products feature his name splashed across an image of his signature bandana.
In 2022, 2.5 million young people in the US reported using e-cigarettes, according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
Meanwhile a decision to ban disposable vapes was recently reached in the UK over fears the products are aimed at under-18s.
Prof Andrew Bush, a consultant paediatric chest physician at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals, said: "I am concerned that we are sleepwalking into a public health catastrophe with a generation of children hooked on nicotine."
The Daily Star has contacted Tyson and Hogan's representatives for comment.
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