Vaping illness, deaths likely very rare beyond U.S., experts say

E-cigarette or vaping-linked lung injuries that have killed 29 and sickened more than 1,000 people in the United States are likely to be rare in Britain and other countries where the suspect products are not widely used, specialists said on Monday. Experts in toxicology and addiction said they are sure that the 1,299 confirmed and probable American cases of serious lung injuries linked to vaping are “a U.S.-specific phenomenon,” and there is no evidence of a similar pattern of illness in Britain or elsewhere.

2019-10-15
reuters.com

Flavoured e-cigarettes should be BANNED after US vaping deaths, chief medical officer says

Prof Dame Sally Davies, the country's most senior doctor for almost a decade, said sweet-like flavours could make vaping attractive to children. She also said she is concerned that the long-term health consequences of the devices remains unknown. That's despite advice from Public Health England, which claims e-cigarettes are 95 per cent safer than smoking. [...] “Vaping is a lot safer than smoking tobacco and probably a good way to help people quit. "But I would prefer if if we did not have flavoured e-cigarettes because I think that is the kind of marketing that can appeal to children.

2019-10-15
thesun.co.uk

As vaping illnesses rise, so do pleas to quit-smoking help lines

stopped for a few days and then I ended up buying new pods. The withdrawals got to me.” “My friends are the ones who got me into vaping. And they think I shouldn’t stop, but I want to because I don’t want to hurt my family if I get sick.” [...] These are just a few of the messages that teen vapers texted in September to the new “My Life, My Quit” program, which offers phone, text and chat lines to young people trying to quit smoking in 13 states. Even though “quitlines” were designed to help people kick cigarette habits, [...]

2019-10-15
salon.com

Vaping: 'I'm 17, and rarely ID'd for e-cigs'

Almost 40% of sellers targeted by councils in England have been caught illegally allowing children to buy e-cigarette products, a report has found. Ninety of the 227 premises tested sold vaping goods to under-age teenagers in 2018-19, data from 34 councils showed. Trading Standards - which compiled the research - has called for greater resources to enforce the law. Public Health England said vaping was 95% healthier than smoking. It is estimated 3.6 million people in the UK now use e-cigarettes.

2019-10-15
bbc.com

Lung injury outbreak: CDC warn against certain vaping products

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are investigating a lung injury outbreak registered across the United States since the beginning of October. While the cause of the outbreak remains unknown, the CDC warn against using e-cigarettes, particularly those that contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or nicotine. Although vaping products and electronic cigarettes are often advertised as less harmful than regular cigarettes, the debate over the health effects of e-cigarettes is ongoing.

2019-10-15
medicalnewstoday.com

EC takes Hungary to court over cigarette excise tax

Hungary was allowed a long transitional period until December 31, 2017, in order to gradually increase the excise duty on cigarettes and reach the required minimum threshold, recalled a press release on the Commission website. Currently, the excise duty applied by Hungary remains below the EU threshold, generating distortions of competition with other Member States, and is at odds with EU health protection policy, it noted.

2019-10-15
bbj.hu