In the News 5th November

Thursdays News at a glance:

Smears or science? The BMJ attack on Public Health England and its e-cigarettes evidence review – Tobacco Control Motto: First, Do Harm – Relapse Prevention – Should we switch from tobacco to e-cigarettes? – American Lung Association and CVS Campaign Downplays the Importance of Smoking in Preventing Lung Cancer – Outrage as vape shops forced to close after health ministry crackdown – Senate Dem demands probe into alleged leak of e-cigarette rules – Are E-Cigarettes Helping to Lower Smoking Rate in US? – E-Cig Stores Struggle To Survive With 67 Percent Tax

Smears or science?

The BMJ attack on Public Health England and its e-cigarettes evidence review – Clive Bates

For doing what it should do and doing it well, Public Health England has been subjected to a frenzy of criticism from the public health establishment. What is going on…? I’d like to make ten observations…

PHE has been trying to help the public understand behavioural risks and so assist them in making informed choices. It commissioned an updated detailed evidence review on e-cigarettes designed to provide some proportionate and reasoned expert advice to consumers, health professionals and policy makers.  It had a headline finding:

Tobacco Control Motto: First, Do Harm

Dick Puddlecote

On Wednesday next week – as I mentioned last month – Kings College London is hosting a debate entitled “This house believes that smoking should be banned in psychiatric hospitals”. This is the preferred policy of Public Health England but is highly controversial so it is no surprise that tickets to attend have sold out.

Prior to that, leading mental health charity SANE has published a blistering blog post attacking the policy and accusing ‘public health’, quite rightly in my opinion, of abandoning decency and going against everything the health community stands for. It oozes common sense and incorporates knowledgeable analysis of mental health experiences, so I do urge you to read it in full….

Relapse Prevention

Alan Beard – Why Oh Why

An interesting twitter exchange provoked this entry. There appears some resistance in UK Government circles, and other influential sources, to the notion of long-term e-cigarette use as a method to maintain tobacco smoking cessation.

This appears totally contradictory when NRT is available for long-term use as approved via NICE guidelines…

Should we switch from tobacco to e-cigarettes?

Michael Mosley – BBC iWonder

As of 2015, there are 2.6 million current or ex-smokers in the UK who now use e-cigarettes – almost four times as many as in 2010.

Although this method has become popular, not everyone’s clear if vaping should be recommended. Some healthcare experts think it has the potential to eradicate smoking-related diseases, while others worry widespread vaping could create unknown problems in the future. Take a look at the evidence to help you decide….

American Lung Association and CVS Campaign

Downplays the Importance of Smoking in Preventing Lung Cancer – The Rest of the Story

The American Lung Association (ALA), with primary financial support from CVS Health (CVS), has initiated a campaign called “Lung Force.” The campaign features a video ad with the theme of “Anyone Can Get Lung Cancer.” Although the ad cites the fact that lung cancer incidence among women has increased over the past decades and mentions radon and air pollution as causes, nowhere in the ad is smoking even mentioned.

Industry Call to Action, the OMB/OIRA process

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Outrage as vape shops forced to close

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 5 — The Health Ministry has officially begun confiscating nicotine content found in e-cigarettes from vape shops, in a move which has angered traders as some shops have been forced to temporarily halt operations.

Some vape shops have had no choice but to temporarily close shop after health ministry confiscated all their nicotine products, which they say is essential for most of their clientele who are ex-smokers….

Senate Dem demands probe into alleged leak of e-cigarette rules

Lydia Wheeler – The Hill

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) is demanding an investigation after a tobacco industry group claimed to have obtained a leaked copy of the Obama administration’s final rules for electronic cigarettes and conventional cigars.

In a letter Thursday, the ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee asked Health and Human Services Inspector General Daniel Levinson to find the leak….

Are E-Cigarettes Helping to Lower Smoking Rate in US?

There has been some concern over experimentation with e-cigarettes among young people and non-smokers but a new study from a well-known anti-tobacco advocacy group says that a fair percentage of former [traditional] smokers actually quit, at least in part, because of electronic cigarettes. Furthermore, their study seems to also suggest that experimentation with e-cigarettes is “extremely low” among non-smoking adults….

E-Cig Stores Struggle To Survive With 67%Tax

You know the old adage: it ain’t over til the light-up “VAPE” sign is sold on Craigslist. Well, that means it’s really over for D.C. Vape Joint, the first e-cigarette store in the District.

Co-owner Erik Miller says the new 67 percent tax on e-cig products forced his hand. “We ran the numbers and it just didn’t make sense” to stay open, he says. “We would have had to invest in other products. It’s not like we were making a ton of money. We didn’t want to risk it.”