Category: News This Week

The UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) yesterday issued what it described as the 10 top motivational facts to help new vapers stick to their New Year resolution to quit smoking.

Yesterday marked the sixth anniversary of ‘National Cigarette Amnesty Day’, which was designed to help UK smokers switch to vaping during January.

In a press note, the UKVIA said that smoking was one of the main causes of preventable deaths in the UK, and that it was one of the most challenging addictions to beat. ‘According to Public Health England, at least half a million smokers are trying to quit this January and vaping is one of the most effective aids to help them do so,’ the Association said. ‘Evidence shows that people trying to quit cigarettes are 50 percent more successful when using vaping devices.’

“Research has shown the first 28 days are the toughest, but if you can get past these without going back to a cigarette, then you are five times more likely to quit smoking for good,” said Doug Mutter, board member of the UKVIA.

The top 10 motivational facts to help new vapers stick to their New Year resolution to quit smoking are:

1. Vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking [Public Health England 2018];
2. Second-hand vapor does not harm those around you [Cancer Research UK, 2016];
3. Vaping doubles the chance of you successfully quitting smoking [Public Health England, 2018];
4. More than three million smokers have already used vaping to quit or reduce their smoking [Action on Smoking and Health, 2018];
5. Vaping helps 20,000 people quit smoking every year [Cancer Research UK, 2018];
6. The average vaper spends £800 less a year on her habit than does a smoker [the UK Government’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, 2014];
7. A smoker turned vaper saves the UK £74,000 [Action on Smoking and Health, 2018];
8. Smoking costs the NHS £2.5 billion a year [Action on Smoking and Health, 2017];
9. Vaping helps save our communities smoking costs of £760 million a year [Royal Society for Public Health, 2018];
10. Vaping shops are saving our high streets across the UK [Action on Smoking and Health, 2017].

Suppliers of vaping devices, including electronic cigarettes and heat-not-burn products, are facing growing Government resistance to their efforts to break into the Indian market, according to a story by Anoo Bhuyan published at thewire.in.

At least three ministries are said to have proposed new regulations on the marketing or import of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS).

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has proposed an amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules 2018 to ban the advertisement of such products.

And the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs has issued a circular – referring to an advisory from the Union health ministry – that all import consignments of ENDS must be cleared by the drug controllers of the states in which the products arrive.

The controllers are then obliged to check the compliance of the products against the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Based on those reports, non-compliant consignments can be denied clearance and punitive action can be taken against those in violation of the Act.

But the story says that the most striking curb on ENDS comes from the proposed amendments to the IT Act.

The legislation was enacted in 2000 to boost and regulate e-commerce transactions, to prevent digital crime and – more recently – to curb fake news on social media.

Section three of the proposed rules states that ‘intermediaries’ should ensure they do not publish information on anything that threatens public health or safety. It goes on to mention tobacco products, intoxicants including alcohol and ENDS.

Smokers in New Zealand can now improve their physical and financial health considerably by switching to vaping.

According to a story in The Bay of Plenty Times, a January 1 tax increase was at least partially responsible for taking the retail price of a pack of 20 cigarettes to more than NZ$20, and in the case of some brands to more than NZ$25.

The excise tax increase behind the price rise is part of a series of annual increases, the last of which is due to be imposed on January 1, 2020.

In the face of the latest price hike, many smokers are switching to vaping as a cheaper option or because of the associated health benefits.

Shosha [a large retail group offering, among other items, vaping devices and e-liquids] vaping store manager Harinder Singh said more people were switching to vaping than ever due to the huge financial savings and health benefits. Most vapers, he said, could expect to pay NZ$60 a week less than they were paying as smokers.

Meanwhile, Mihi Blair of Hapai Te Hauora Maori Public Health said the organization was urging smokers, particularly wahine, to vape as a way of kicking the habit. “Whanau who are wanting to learn more about vaping or going smoke-free should contact Quitline,” Blair said.

Quitline was expecting an influx of calls and texts from people seeking support this month because such people often said their key motivation was to save money, according to Quitline’s communication manager Calvin Cochran.

Allowing smokers to determine their nicotine intake while they are trying to quit is likely to help them kick their habit, according to a EurekAlert story citing a study of 50 people led by Queen Mary University of London.

The results of the first study to tailor nicotine dosing based on the choices of smokers trying to quit suggest that most smokers who use stop-smoking medications can easily tolerate doses that are four times higher than those normally recommended.

Study author Dunja Przulj of Queen Mary University of London said that smokers determined their nicotine intake while they smoked, but that when they tried to quit their nicotine levels were dictated by the recommended dosing of the treatment. “These levels may be far too low for some people, increasing the likelihood that they go back to smoking,” Przulj said.

“Medicinal nicotine products may be under-dosing smokers and could explain why we’ve seen limited success in treatments, such as patches and gum, helping smokers to quit. A change in their application is now needed.

“Our findings should provide reassurance to smokers that it is okay to use whatever nicotine doses they find helpful.”

When nicotine replacement treatment was first evaluated in the 1970s, low doses were used because of concerns about toxicity and addictiveness. Evidence then emerged that nicotine on its own, outside of tobacco products, has limited addictive potential, and that higher doses are safe and well tolerated. Despite this, stop-smoking medications have maintained lower nicotine levels in their products.

The new study, published in the journal Addiction, examined 50 smokers in a tobacco dependence clinic in Argentina, and was the first to try a combined approach of ‘pre-loading’ nicotine prior to the quit date, and tailoring nicotine levels based on patient feedback.

The owner of two vaping stores in Portland, Oregon, US, is asking a judge to throw out a state list of banned words and pictures on vaping liquid packages, according to a storyby Aimee Green at oregonlive.com.

Paul Bates says the state’s “ridiculous” rules defy logic. For instance, he says in his lawsuit that the packages can’t use the words ‘apple or ‘strawberry’ even to describe the apple- or strawberry-infused liquids he sells for use with electronic cigarettes.

The same goes for pictures of apples or strawberries.

Employees at his Division Vapor stores in Southeast and Northeast Portland use white stickers to cover images on the labels that don’t comply with state rules, and that amounts to censorship and a violation of free speech, the suit contends.

“The new rules are just mind-boggling,” Bates reportedly told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Wednesday.

His suit lists the Oregon Health Authority, which is responsible for creating the banned list, as a defendant. Delia Hernandez, a spokeswoman for the agency, declined comment because of the pending litigation.

Hernandez, however, said the recent packaging rules were sparked by concern from the state lawmakers, who passed a law in 2015 requiring that packaging not be attractive to children.

In response, the Oregon Health Authority adopted a rule that said vaping liquid labels can’t depict images that might be appealing to minors – including those of “celebrities, athletes, mascots, fictitious characters” or “food or beverages likely to appeal to minors such as candy, desserts, soda, food or beverages with sweet flavors including fruit or alcohol”. This year, health officials added words, such as “tart, tangy, sweet, cool, fire, ice” and the names of fruits.

Bates, who buys his entire inventory from other companies that mostly don’t comply with Oregon regulations, said the health authority hadn’t forced him to follow the latest rules – yet.

The suit was filed in Multnomah County Circuit Court. Beaverton attorney Herbert Grey is representing Bates

Vaporized has announced a major re-brand as it targets international growth.

The UK company has been re-branded to VPZ, with the roll-out taking place during the first quarter of 2019.

The re-brand has been designed to bring better engagement with consumers as the business eyes new growth opportunities in Europe, according to a press note.

It will also open-up the marketplace and be more aligned with new emerging product categories that fit the business model, the note states.

The re-brand comes as VPZ forges ahead with ambitious growth plans to treble its store footprint to 300 in the UK by 2021.

“The re-brand to VPZ gives us a stand out presence in a growing marketplace, whilst still staying recognizable to our loyal customers across the country,” said VPZ director Doug Mutter. “We are already amid exciting growth plans and the re-brand gives us a further platform to realize our international expansion vision, providing a transferable name that is easily recognizable to consumers across global regions. The re-brand also fits with our strategy of bringing new product categories for our expanding customer base.”

The US Surgeon General (SG) has said that action must be taken against electronic-cigarette use to protect the health of the nation’s young people.

In an advisory on e-cigarettes, VADM Jerome Adams said he was emphasizing the importance of protecting ‘our children’ from a lifetime of nicotine addiction and associated health risks by immediately addressing the epidemic of youth e-cigarette use.

‘The recent surge in e-cigarette use among youth, which has been fueled by new types of e-cigarettes that have recently entered the market, is a cause for great concern.

‘We must take action now to protect the health of our nation’s young people.’

The SG’s intervention was welcomed by the American Medical Association (AMA).

The AMA’s president, Barbara L. McAneny MD, said, in part, that the Association strongly supported the SG’s call for immediate action to address “the skyrocketing use of e-cigarettes by youth”.

“Given the dramatic rise in e-cigarette use amongst young people in the last year alone, it is very clear that we must all do everything we can to help reverse this epidemic,” she was quoted as saying.

“The only way to prevent another generation from developing nicotine dependence is to continue to raise awareness that e-cigarettes are harmful, powerfully addictive, and can often lead young people to smoke conventional cigarettes.

“E-cigarettes have the potential to undermine the public health gains that have been made over the years in combatting the smoking epidemic.

“We agree that parents, teachers and physicians are instrumental in reaching youth to help prevent e-cigarette use before it starts.

“We look forward to working closely with the Surgeon General’s Office to help protect our nation’s youth from e-cigarettes and the harmful nicotine they contain.”

Altria Group has signed and closed a $12.8 billion investment in Juul Labs, the U.S. leader in vapor products. The service agreements will accelerate Juul’s mission to switch adult smokers to vapor products. Altria’s investment represents a 35 percent economic interest in Juul, valuing the company at $38 billion. Juul will remain fully independent.

“We are taking significant action to prepare for a future where adult smokers overwhelmingly choose noncombustible products over cigarettes by investing $12.8 billion in Juul, a world leader in switching adult smokers,” said Howard Willard, Altria’s chairman and chief executive officer.

“We have long said that providing adult smokers with superior, satisfying products with the potential to reduce harm is the best way to achieve tobacco harm reduction. Through Juul, we are making the biggest investment in our history toward that goal. We strongly believe that working with Juul to accelerate its mission will have long-term benefits for adult smokers and our shareholders.”

“Altria’s investment sends a very clear message that Juul’s technology has given us a truly historic opportunity to improve the lives of the world’s one billion adult cigarette smokers,” said Kevin Burns, chief executive officer of Juul. “This investment and the service agreements will accelerate our mission to increase the number of adult smokers who switch from combustible cigarettes to Juul devices.”

Juul will remain fully independent and will have access to Altria’s extensive infrastructure and services. As part of the service agreements:

• Altria will provide Juul access to its premier innovative tobacco products retail shelf space, allowing Juul’s tobacco and menthol-based products to appear alongside combustible cigarettes. Juul’s flavored products will continue to only be available on Juul.com.
• Altria will enable Juul to reach adult smokers with direct communications through cigarette pack inserts and mailings to adult smokers via Altria companies’ databases.
• Altria will apply its logistics and distribution experience to help Juul expand its reach and efficiency and Juul will have the option to be supported by Altria’s sales organization, which covers approximately 230,000 retail locations.

Fueled by its unique and innovative Silicon Valley approach to product development and founded by former smokers, Juul has rapidly built an industry-leading position by satisfying adult tobacco consumers with its differentiated e-vapor products.

Juul has quickly grown both revenue and share, and today represents approximately 30 percent of the total U.S. vapor category, according to Altria. Juul has a deep innovation pipeline and currently operates in eight countries, with rapid international expansion plans.

“This is a unique and compelling opportunity to invest in an extraordinary company, the fastest growing in the U.S. vapor category. We are excited to support Juul’s highly-talented team and offer our best-in- class services to build on their tremendous success,” added Willard.

Public Health England (PHE) has released a new film showing the devastating harms that can be caused by smoking combustible cigarettes, and how those health problems can be avoided by switching to vaping electronic cigarettes or by using a quit aid.

The film has been released as part of PHE’s Health Harms campaign, which encourages smokers to attempt to quit in January. It demonstrates the harm to health caused by every cigarette.

The film features a leading smoking cessation academic at University College London, Dr. Lion Shahab, and a National Health Service GP, Dr. Rosemary Leonard, ‘visually demonstrating the high levels of cancer-causing chemicals and tar inhaled by an average smoker over a month, compared to not smoking or using an e-cigarette,’ according to a PHE press note on the GOV.UK website.

‘The results of the demonstration visually illustrate the stark contrast between the impacts of smoking and vaping. Research estimates that while not risk-free, vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking.

‘Around 2.5 million adults are using e-cigarettes in England, and they have helped thousands of people successfully quit – but many smokers (44 percent) either believe that vaping is as harmful as smoking (22 percent) or don’t know that vaping poses much lower risks to health (22 percent).’

Professor John Newton, director of health improvement at PHE, was quoted as saying that it would be tragic if thousands of smokers who could quit with the help of an e-cigarette were being put off due to false fears about safety. “We need to reassure smokers that switching to an e-cigarette would be much less harmful than smoking,” he said. “This demonstration highlights the devastating harms caused by every cigarette and helps people see that vaping is likely to pose only a fraction of the risk.

“We want to encourage more smokers to try and quit completely with the help of an e-cigarette, or by using other nicotine replacement such as patches or gum, as this will significantly improve their chances of success. If you’re trying to stop smoking, our free online personal quit plan will help you find the support that’s right for you.”

Meanwhile, Shahab was quoted as saying that the false belief that vaping was as harmful as smoking could be preventing thousands of smokers from switching to e-cigarettes to help them quit. “I hope this illustrative experiment helps people see the huge damage caused by smoking that could be avoided by switching to an e-cigarette,” he said.

“Research we and others have conducted shows that vaping is much less harmful than smoking and that using e-cigarettes on a long-term basis is relatively safe, similar to using licensed nicotine products, like nicotine patches or gum. Using e-cigarettes or nicotine replacement such as patches or gum will boost your chances of quitting successfully.

“Smoking increases the risk of developing more than 50 serious health conditions, including cancer and heart disease, and doubles the risk of dying from a stroke. Of the 6.1 million smokers in England, 6 in 10 want to quit, but many try to quit using willpower alone – or going ‘cold turkey’ – despite this being the least effective method.

“The most successful quit attempts use a combination of effective stop smoking support methods. Recent research suggests that smokers who quit with the help of an e-cigarette are less likely to start smoking again.

“Public Health England’s personal quit plan is a quick, free and easy-to-use digital tool to help smokers find the right support to help them quit, taking into account how much they smoke, and any quitting support used previously.”

Leonard said that she had wanted to be involved in the experiment because every day she saw the devastating impact that smoking had on people’s health, but rarely got the opportunity to show people what was happening inside their bodies when they smoked.

“I regularly give patients advice about quitting and when I recommend e-cigarettes, I am often surprised to hear the misconceptions some people have about them, she said. “The results of this experiment clearly show that every cigarette you smoke causes tar to enter your body and spreads poison throughout your bloodstream. Vaping is much less harmful than smoking and I really hope this experiment will encourage smokers to make a quit attempt. No matter how old you are, it’s never too late to stop.”

John Dunne MD of E-Liquid Brands and director of the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) described the contents of the PHE press note as “fantastic news going into the new year when many people in this country are looking to quit smoking and improve their health”. “This further goes to support the positive vaping narrative that this country is lucky to have and I hope it will assist smokers in making an informed decision,” he said.

“Vaping is fast becoming the most popular quitting aid in the UK and around the world. However, according to the latest ASH research 40 percent of smokers have not tried them. There is a serious public misunderstanding of the risks and benefits of e-cigarette use.

“Millions of smokers wrongly think that vaping is as harmful as smoking and fewer than one in ten adults know that most of the health damage caused by smoking comes from the by-products of cigarette combustion, and not from the nicotine content. In 2017 only 13 percent of adults correctly identified that e-cigarettes are much less harmful than smoking, compared to 21 percent in 2013. The proportion of adults thinking that e-cigarettes are at least as dangerous as smoking nearly quadrupled from 2013 to 2017 from seven percent to 26 percent.

“I hope that this experiment will go some way to dispelling this false notion.”

The largest study on vaping safety to date has confirmed that vapers are exposed to far fewer toxic chemicals than are smokers, according to a story published on the website of the Australian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association.

The story, by Dr. Colin Mendelsohn, conjoint associate professor at the School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, referred to a study of 5,105 adults that was published recently in JAMA Network Open by a group of leading researchers, led by Maciej Goniewicz.

The study measured the levels of tobacco toxins in the urine in four different groups: exclusive vapers (vaping only); exclusive smokers (smoking only); dual users (smoking and vaping); and never-smokers

Mendelsohn said that the researchers had tested 50 of ‘the most important toxins normally found in tobacco smoke which cause most of the smoking-related disease, including TSNAs (tobacco-specific nitrosamines), PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), metals and VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Many of these chemicals were carcinogens or were toxic to the cardiovascular, lung or reproductive organs.

Mendelsohn said that the key finding of the study was that vapers had a 10-98 percent lower concentration of toxins compared to smokers for the toxins measured.

‘All levels were lower in vapers except for most metals and 3 VOCs (toluene, benzene and carbon disulfide),’ he said. ‘Vapers had higher exposure to passive smoking so some of the toxins may have come from second-hand smoke. Also, some chemicals such as metals stay in the body for years and may have originated from past smoking or other sources.’

Never smokers had toxin levels that were 19-91 percent lower than those found in vapers.

The study results were said to have been similar to other previous studies as summarised in the 2018 US National Academies of Medicine, Science and Engineering report.