“LONDON: “UK Doctors Demand Government Response to Vaping Crisis”, On Wednesday (Aug 28), prominent UK doctors called on the government to take decisive action against what they describe as a ‘vaping epidemic,’ particularly affecting young people. They urged for new legislation to ban disposable e-cigarettes and restrict vape flavors to only tobacco, citing concerns over rising health risks and addiction among youth.”
The call came alongside the publication of a British Medical Association (BMA) report which it said was a “blueprint” for the “bold actions needed”.
The previous Conservative government unveiled plans earlier this year to eventually phase out smoking, alongside banning disposable e-cigarettes and restricting their flavours and packaging.
The new Labour administration – which swept to power early last month – has revived the draft legislation but is yet to detail its exact approach.
The BMA report noted that vape use among children and young people has increased almost six-fold in the last decade. “There is no denying we are living in a vaping epidemic,” Professor David Strain, chair of the BMA’s board of science, said in comments accompanying the report’s release.
He noted one in 10 adults now vape, while calling the six-fold increase in those aged between 11 and 17 who now vape “far more worrying”.
“As a doctor, I understand the role vapes can play in helping people to stop smoking, but they have no rightful place in our children and young people’s lives,” Strain added.
“An industry so obviously targeting children with colours, flavours and branding, to push a product that can lead to nicotine addiction and potential further harms cannot be allowed to happen any longer.”
The report recommends banning all disposable vape and non-tobacco flavour sales, as well as using imagery, colouring and branding on packaging and devices.
