We cannot let history repeat itself. I am a mother of two teenagers and the principal at a Catholic girls’ school. I have concerns about the rapid rise in vaping among adolescents and the potential effects of the unknown chemicals on the health of our young people.
Totally understandable given the misinformation perpetuated by media-loving hysteria and moral panic coupled with public health that is totally misguided or mislead to the actual science, facts & potential harms. History is not going to repeat itself. Vaping is not smoking, is not addictive and at most carries 5% of the potential harms of combustible tobacco sans cancer. Do you really think public health England (who were the ones to link dreadful harms with tobacco in the first place) would be doing everything to get smokers to switch, opening vape shops in hospitals and making hospitals no smoke zones but vape friendly if the narrative Australia is being given was warranted?
Vaping began as an idea to help smokers quit but has quickly developed into a multi-billion dollar industry.
Australia has one of the lowest rates of smoking in the world.
To this day, the number of vapers who weren't smokers barely registers on any surveys worldwide. Unless a smoker or someone nicotinic receptors benefit from nicotine - people simply don't choose to consume. The US & NZ have seen an unbelievable reduction in young & older people smoking since regulating vaping. Youth smoking in the US is actually now lower than in Australia. All round the world smoking drops, vaping rises. Some correlation surveys try to argue causation in leads to smoking but this is absolute nonsense.
Australia is not far off loosing that lowest smoking rate in the world - I'd argue it's not been the case for some time given the huge black market due to absurd taxes that hurt the poor and provide government 17+ billion reasons not to regulate a cheaper and healthier alternative.
Public health strategies and community campaigns have saved millions in national health costs.
We have taken our smoking rate from 25 per cent in 1991 to about 11.6 per cent in 2019. Truly amazing.
It took a long time to make changes to the sale of cigarettes, understand the health implications, and change legislation to reduce consumption. Vaping has caught us by surprise, and I hope we can act quickly to prevent history from repeating itself.
Science has come a long way to measure what took many years in the harms of tobacco compare to the ability today to measure possible harms of safer nicotine alternatives. Look how quickly covid vaccines got to market.To use that ideology is being a science denier.
No vaping has not caught Australia by surprise - denial of offering it to smokers has led to a black market that doesn't age check. Make no mistakes - the Australian government's refusal to regulate nicotine vaping like tobacco or alcohol has caused so many problems. Those numbers don't look correct - from memory, it was 14.x% and that doesn't account for 1 in 5 cigs smoked being illicit. The smoking rate has remained barely changed in the past decade. US, NZ, UK & Japan streets ahead in lower smoking rate - because tobacco harm reduction measures regulated and endorsed. Japan alone 48% drop in smoking in 5 years!!
The RACP put the cost of smoking at $132B dollars. Now one could argue $17B in tobacco excise isn't an argument but think about it - medicare is provided by us, the tax payers where $17B goes straight into gov revenue.
It's not so much clutch the pearls over what's been achieved to date but what hasn't.
In the past 10 years all countries that have embraced tobacco harm reduction have smashed smoking decline compared to Australia. The only ones still delusional and have not woken up to this fact is tobacco control who pat themselves on the back quoting 20 yr figures to hide the failures in the late 10.
The ideological nonsense that the Australian tobacco group think is carrying on with is costing lives & a public health fail. Totally ignoring all what we now know why people use nicotine and the importance of far safer alternatives - this being a strong argument for human rights violations on the government's part by not offering alternatives with cigs that dont kill and hurt people.
People will always use nicotine, but they dont need to die because of it. At this rate Australia is going to be a backwater whilst other countries phase out cigarettes or severely reduce consumption via safer alternatives.
Vaping is the act of inhaling and exhaling aerosols produced by an e-cigarette or similar battery-powered device. There are two kinds of devices, one that contains nicotine and one that does not. I consider both to be harmful.
How did you come to this conclusion? Did you know leading research scientists actually now believe caffeine poses more harm than nicotine due to sleep cycle disturbance? Some flavour combinations may cause some scary sounding chemicals but the key is in the levels. Many things we consume & breathe have a lot of the chemicals the anti's bang on about. Generally sitting in traffic offers you a higher level of harmful chemicals than any vape device or product would. Basic ingredients - PG/VG/Nicotine - then flavours. Prop Glycol & Veg Glycerine are in hundreds of consumer products. Fog machines use them - do you think twice breathing in created fog?
I believe many young people are unaware that they are exposing themselves to a variety of toxic chemicals, not only nicotine but a variety of unknown chemicals that are often unlabelled. The effect of combinations of chemicals on a teenager’s brain development and lungs is largely unknown. Just like asbestos was safe to play in, years later, the devastating impacts are now understood.
Did you know nicotine vaping is the most studied area of science in the past decade? Think it's up to around 12k. Moral panic has driven fear and doubt messaging built on uncertainty which simply is not justified. The media lack of truthful and balanced information on this topic is disgusting and just proves they are just looking for hit pieces to drive clicks - or we lack serious journalistic integrity. A key thing to remember is it's the dose that makes the poison. Too much air and water can also have serious health concerns. Again, teenage brains - how many geniuses and adults started smoking young and for years - where is their brain damage? Did you know research. is now showing strong signs nicotine benefits and wards off dementia and other brain diseases?
According to the Alcohol and Drug Foundation in its article Vaping in Australia, in Australia, about 14 per cent of 12-to-17-year-olds have tried an e-cigarette. About 32 per cent of these students have used one in the past month.
Young Instagram influencers are very successfully promoting vaping products. Tik Tok influencers are producing videos doing creative tricks with vape smoke. The smoke rings by beautiful people in trendy fashion and accompanied by popular street music is making smoking appealing, rebellious and cool, at least in the eyes of young people.
This is moral panic. The devices kids are getting from the black market are disposables that are incapable of doing 'vape ticks'. Most of what you will find are consumers themselves - and 'influencers' have not been a thing since circa 2017 in the US. This again is very badly executed research on many people's parts. Vape companies no longer pay influencers as such, some dodgy ones did during the boom in the US yes. Most of which are no longer in business. You will find as an industry they've done a good job at self-regulation prior to governments making regulations and after have adhered to them. Again talking outside of Australia as our health authorities and government don't see the importance to regulating a 95% harm reduced alternative sans cancer to offer smokers.#QuitOrDie is the mantra which is deluded and cruel. Suggest looking up a few docos - A Billion Lives & You Dont know Nicotine.
The biggest offenders to getting teens curious are all the health orgs using US-style DARE campaign tactics.
Out of all the taboos youth do and shouldn't, vaping is one that presents the least harm.
These videos are gaining significant viewer numbers and are very influential. Teenagers are exposed to this messaging 24/7, and social media plays a key role in promoting vaping.
Social media in general is a worry for the mental health of our youth as well as adult vices they should not do.
Thank god they have parents to navigate this confusing and harsh world that confronts them compared to the times we grew up in.
Again - who ever has informed you of this threat - get them to identify an 'influencer', a business as well as date the posts they are referring to - many who are driving the hysteria bus seek prohibition because they have lost touch with reality, ignorant as to the many reasons people use nicotine and under a delusion cigarettes are not going to be around. More kids are addicted to tobacco in Australia than use vape products habitually. The push should be to regulate safer nicotine and have a plan to phase out tobacco. Did you know the worlds largest tobacco company wants to stop selling cigarettes in the next decade? Guess what; won't happen here whilst prohibition on vaping is protecting cigarettes.
This did not exist during peak tobacco use. In the US, they even have vaping competitions, and it is seen as a sport.
No longer a thing - history. Was also in EU as well. This was nothing to do with promotion but ex smokers celebrating the technology & community they build being tobacco free.
Manufacturers of vaping products target adolescents, knowing that this is the period of greatest experimentation and influence. Marlboro has invested $13 billion in JUUL, a vaping product with flavours that include watermelon, mango, and peach.
No they don't - JUULs only crime was being naive in the volatile market they were entering. On the good side, their highly innovative product is responsible for tens of millions giving up deadly tobacco. And Altria invested in, not Marlboro. Altria also owned Kraft food for years - yes Vegemite was own by a tobacco company. JUUL don't have Watermelon or peach flavours. When the FDA was concerned over youth to take up in the US - JUUL took flavours off the market voluntarily. In all US youth surveys - flavours are way down the list as to why teens vaped or tried a vape. For adult smokers how ever, flavours are key. Altrias purchase of JUUL gives them 30% - they did this because their ecig solution was garbage.
Another alternative, Puff Bars, which contains high nicotine levels, is also made with child-friendly flavours, including strawberry, cafe latte, banana ice, watermelon, and tangerine. These products are explicitly targeting adolescents.
Since young people tend not to smoke and tobacco sales have plummeted, vaping has become the new revenue stream for powerful tobacco companies. They are promoting vaping as a healthy and sociable alternative. Tobacco companies are making major profits while affecting the health of our teenagers.
Puff barrs have the same nicotine levels as all low power, low aerosol solutions. There is no evidence teenagers are being hurt - again this is unwarranted fear-mongering.
Flavours don't equate to marketing to teenagers. Adults like flavoured alcohol, ice cream, chocolate, food and and and....
Smoke sales have plummeted due to safer alternatives. They are not promoted to teens. They are a healthier alternative - 10+ years concurrent study by PHE 95% harm reduced sans cancer - and recent research indicates that JUUL/PUFF style low power alternatives are even less risky. High nicotine is weaponised - it's all relative to the device, power and coil technology. It's not like alcohol as such.
The Smoking and Tobacco Product Advertisement Act was passed in Australia in 1989. From that day forward, tobacco advertising was banned in print media, billboards, cinema, and sporting sponsorship. The broadcasting of advertisements on television ceased earlier in 1973. How can we control vaping advertising, and is it even possible to control it on social media?
This s not driving Australian kids - this is all ideological nonsense. It's a fad fuelled buy government not making the right decisions. Marketing is not making teens curious - this is all in tobacco controls head. Instead of pushing for healthier alternatives for adult smokers they are stuck slaying dragons. Stuck playing circa 1990 kick tobacco in the nuts games. It's a whole new landscape and if they don't wake up & adapt soon - their carry on is going to bite. History will judge.
Do you realise it's legal to buy nicotine gums, sprays, lollies and patches 12 yrs old up? Same nicotine. You should see the ingredients in the inhalers & sprays - more than in vapor liquids. But again, dose makes poison.
Prof David Sweanor TEDx
Currently, the sale of e-cigarettes containing nicotine is not legal in Australia. Some creative vaping websites have set up partnerships overseas so that Australians wanting to purchase nicotine devices can do so via their website and not break the law.
And those creative companies are doing more for public health than public health. (to understand this, look at why people use nicotine, why tobacco is so hard to give up for many and more.. "You Don't know Nicotine" doco.
Combusting tobacco produces powerful MAOIs (antidepressants) - ever tried to come off them? Also dopamine enhancers and much more. 600x chemicals in a cig to make nicotine addictive - clean nicotine is not addictive.
A sad day when smokers who choose a product that won't kill them have to jump through so many hoops - yet can get death sticks 24/7 20k outlets Australia wide. Equally sad that public health is hiding behind junk science and ignoring all the real science that other governments have used to regulate these protects. Who is protecting who?
Vapes are easily purchased online. - yes, only by those with a credit card which means over 18.
Products that resemble tobacco products, regardless of whether they contain nicotine or not, cannot be sold in Western Australia. However, you can buy nicotine-free vaping devices in other States.
As of October, the Australian Government will prohibit the importation of e-cigarettes containing nicotine or refills unless on prescription from a doctor. This will hopefully reduce the number of vaping devices being imported from overseas.
A pipe dream. Lack of regulation & disposables from China have mean the perfect storm. On one hand, great because regardless of the anti science approach regulators & gov in Australia are taking - people are actually accidentally giving up smokers thanks to the booming black market. Bad side is; no age checks.
Demand too high, massive profits due to prohibition and China doesn't give a rats about Australians ridiculous laws.
Investigations recently into acquiring disposable devices from China; anything from $1-$4 each, 100s of options. including Rick & Morty, Simpsons, Star Wars, Supreme, Gucci and even Mario. Leds, Glow Sticks - never ending options. Even your own brand added to them.
This is not big tobacco, not the 'billion dollar' vaping industry - this is China - you know they same place that makes high quality fake Gucci hand bags.
ABF can't put a cork in illicit tobacco coming from China - disposable vapes far more easier to import.
Regulate - demand drops - profit no longer massive and everything is managed like smoking & alcohol.
I am alarmed that we are allowing tobacco companies to refuel their income with this new revenue stream from vaping. They are actively marketing to our young people, and we need to take action.
Controlling the vaping epidemic is a significant challenge not just for schools but for society. Vaping is very convenient as it may simply be a pen-shaped object that easily fits into a pocket and is readily disguised as a pen. It is also difficult to detect due to limited odour.
I firmly believe this is not just an issue for schools but also for parents as most use occurs at parties and in social situations.
At a school level, we need to ensure students have a clear understanding of the health impacts, the marketing strategy of vaping companies targeting teenagers and encouraging parents to have conversations with their teenagers.
Some schools are installing vaping detectors in the toilets, but there are many places vaping can occur, so we need to empower young people to make better choices.
However, schools and parents cannot do this alone. We need Federal legislation that directly applies to e-cigarettes, not just tobacco. Seventy other countries have already enacted e-cigarette specific policies.
If vaping is here to stay, we need to regulate the product quality and safety standards and place a ban on the dedicated vaping forums and social media groups that raise awareness and facilitate access to these products, especially in relation to young people under the age of 18. This is crucial.
We cannot let tobacco companies prioritise profit over the health of our young people.
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