CHICAGO — An ordinance to ban the sale of flavored nicotine products in suburban Cook County will be introduced Thursday at the Cook County Board Meeting.

County officials said it’s an attempt to stop a young, new generation from getting hooked on nicotine.

Banning the sale of flavored nicotine products at retailers in unincorporated Cook County is something Commissioner Donna Miller wants to do.

The ban would include products that contain menthol, fruit, candy dessert or alcohol flavors.

Miller said it’s all about stopping youth from starting.

“A seventh-grader told me that when she is on social media they are constantly targeting her to try flavored nicotine,” Miller said. “She thought that sounded like a bad idea.”

The full board will vote on the proposed ordinance on Thursday. Miller was joined by other county officials including Dr. LaMar Hasbrouck who is the chief operating officer of the Cook County Department of Public Health to discuss it.

“Unfortunately, disproportionately Black and brown youth are targeted,” Hasbrouck said.

But the ban is also intended to protect all kids.

Sheriff Tom Dart’s officers could make unannounced inspections of any retailer in unincorporated Cook County.

He said his teen daughters vaping is a practice teens hide.

“This is addictive behavior,” Dart said. “We clearly know who the target audience is and we don’t have to give a lot of thought to do what we need to do to get there.”

Violators could pay a fine from $1,000 to $5,000 for each offense.

“E-flavored cigarettes are hooking a whole new generation on nicotine and putting millions of kids and young adults at risk and threatening the progress of cutting down on tobacco use,” Miller said.

Chicago’s ban on flavored e-cigarettes has been in place since September 2020.