Vapers Digest 12th June

Wednesday’s News at a glance:

Fixing U.S. vape regulation – twelve proposals – Nicotine is Not the Problem – IBVTA Presents a 6 Point Manifesto – EU Elections Warning Issued – Flavoured vape bans have led to MORE teen smoking – Vaping does not “cause” teens to smoke – Nicotine Pouches Are Replacing Snuff in Iceland – Drug War-Style Federal Task Force Will Enforce FDA Vape Rules – FDA Made 10,000 Vaping Products Illegal – Denmark Presents Position Paper – Ending the vaping misperception epidemic – Quebecers turning to cigarettes – Vapes should be regulated as less harmful alternatives – Senate to Hold Hearings on “Youth Vaping Epidemic” – Science-based or science fiction? –

Fixing U.S. regulation – twelve proposals

Clive Bates, The Counterfactual

In practice, FDA’s regulation of the US vape market amounts to not regulating at all. I offer a diagnosis and twelve remedies.

The 23 vape products authorised by the FDA for legal sale in the United States account for around one per cent of the total market in the financial year 2023, depending on estimates of the size of the untracked market and other forms of illicit trade.

In this post, I will provide a diagnosis of the problems with the FDA’s handling of its responsibilities for the regulation of safer nicotine products, notably vaping products. I finish with a set of twelve proposals to address these problems.

Nicotine is Not the Problem

Jeffrey S. Smith

In the United States, it is estimated that approximately 500,000 Americans die of smoking-related diseases each year, a number that hasn’t wavered much over the last decade, even though smoking rates have consistently dropped year over year. During the same period, a wide array of new products that deliver nicotine without combustion (smoke) entered the marketplace. The presence of these products has been the source of much debate in terms of impact on public health, potential unforeseen health risks that might arise from long-term use of these products, and their role in reducing the health burden associated with smoking cigarettes.

Two from Dave Cross, Planet of the Vapes:

IBVTA Presents a 6 Point Manifesto

The Independent British Vape Trade Association has launched a six-point manifesto on behalf of the independent vape industry for the benefit of the next government. The independent trade body says its Responsible Vaping Manifesto, “neatly and succinctly sets out the vape sector’s asks and what the next government should ensure.”

The Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) says it, “is intent on working collaboratively with the new Government to ensure that vaping policy, law and regulation is developed in a way which ultimately achieves the shared objectives of reducing youth vaping, while recognising, and not disproportionately impacting the proven role of vaping in supporting adult smoking cessation.”

EU Elections Warning Issued

On the eve of this year’s European elections, international health experts rallied behind a call to action for MEP candidates and policymakers to incorporate Sweden’s tobacco harm reduction strategies into the new mandate. With the revision of the Tobacco Products Directive on the agenda, the elections are an historic opportunity to enact lifesaving changes for smokers across the entire Union, says Smoke Free Sweden.

Smoke Free Sweden says: “In 2023, the European Parliament recognised in its report on non-communicable diseases the role that products such as e-cigarettes play in smoking cessation. By implementing this recommendation into policy actions as part of the upcoming revision of Tobacco Products Directive, EU policymakers have an unprecedented opportunity to save the lives of almost 3 million smokers across Europe.”

Thinking ’bout THR Newsletter June 10-12, 2024
Enough news, studies, events, and videos to keep anyone from being bored!https://t.co/Prn7RQaYEF pic.twitter.com/YIoFdypgay

— Skip’s Corner (@Skips_Corner) June 12, 2024

Two from Ali Anderson, Clearing The Air:

Flavoured vape bans have led….

To MORE teen smoking, shock study shows

Banning flavoured vapes has led to a rise in young people smoking, a new report reveals. Governments around the world have increasingly been implementing bans on flavoured vapes to reduce their appeal to young people. This is in line with advice from the World Health Organisation.

In 2020, the U.S announced a countrywide ban on most vape flavours except tobacco and mint amid concerns about vaping among teens. However, a major new working paper published in the National Bureau of Economic Research has found “evidence of an unintended effect” in the country’s youngest vape users.

Gateway hypothesis debunked

The ‘gateway hypothesis’ – that young people who vape are more likely to move on to more dangerous cigarettes – has long been cited as a reason to ban nicotine alternatives. However, a new review of evidence published in the Harm Reduction Journal concludes that vape use does NOT act as a gateway to teens taking up smoking.

The study titled ‘Gateway hypothesis: evaluation of evidence and alternative explanations’ finds that anti-vape policies based on the gateway effect could in fact have the “unintended consequence of increased cigarette smoking.”

Nicotine Pouches Are Replacing Snuff

In Iceland – Joseph Hart

Does anyone remember snuff, the smokeless tobacco product that you could snort? I haven’t thought about it in years, but I remember there were tins of the stuff floating around after Ireland banned smoking in pubs. For a while, you could barely go for a pint in Dublin without someone offering you a pinch of the dried tobacco product.

It was pleasant enough, but it didn’t take off for me or my friends for a few reasons:

Drug War-Style Federal Task Force

Will Enforce FDA Vape Rules – Jim McDonald

In a press release that reads like something from the Drug War era, the FDA today announced the formation of a “multi-agency task force” to crack down on the sale of popular vaping products that have not received FDA authorization. The targeted products are sold online, and in most vape shops, convenience stores and gas stations.

The task force, led by the FDA and Justice Department (DOJ), will also include as “enforcement partners” the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS); the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

FDA Made 10,000 Vaping Products Illegal

Now It Wants More Armed Agents To Enforce It – Science 2.0

It will be up to science history to try and gain insight into the reasons the federal government engaged in “Reefer Madness” narratives about marijuana, and then backed off that yet did the same to smoking cessation and harm reduction tools like vaping.

Cigarette smoking is unquestionably dangerous, the world’s top lifestyle killer. Because nicotine is addictive it is hard to quit. Because it is an addiction there are also psychological hooks, behavioral aspects, and that is why no one product works for everyone. Nicotine patches and gums are great, if they work, but they often don’t because they only replicate the nicotine.

Denmark Presents Position Paper

Advocating for a Ban on Nicotine Pouches

In an unexpected move before the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council on the 21st of June, Denmark has issued a position paper advocating for a ban on nicotine pouches, or a de facto ban, by proposing a ban on flavors. The effort appears to be supported by Belgium and the Netherlands. The paper urges the European Commission to take action, suggesting initiatives should include a ban on flavors in nicotine products, a limit on nicotine content, and, where necessary, a ban on certain products.

While there is a consensus on the need for regulation to protect the underaged, it is remarkable to see a position paper that highlights smoking tobacco as a prime cause of premature death in the EU, conclude that the reasonable response is to ban other products such as reduced-risk alternatives.

Ending the vaping misperception

Epidemic for the sake of public health – Michael Landl

Is vaping more or less harmful than smoking, and can it contribute to improved public health? Despite its apparent simplicity, this question divides parliaments, journalists, and tobacco control activists, even though the answer is straightforward: vaping is less harmful than smoking and represents a game changer for public health.

According to research conducted by Ipsos for the think tank “We Are Innovation”, an astonishing 74% of smokers worldwide mistakenly believe that vaping is as harmful or more harmful than smoking. This widespread misunderstanding, fueled by misinformation, potentially prevents millions from switching to a safer alternative like vaping. A recent UK study supports this, noting that “harm perceptions do predict subsequent vaping and smoking behaviour.”

Quebecers turning to cigarettes

After flavoured e-cigarettes banned

The sale of vaping products containing flavour was banned in Quebec as of Oct. 31, 2023 — and a few months later, 36 per cent of vapers have turned to cigarettes, according to data revealed in a recent survey.

According to the Léger firm survey conducted on behalf of the Coalition of the Rights of Quebecers who Vape (CDVQ), 22 per cent returned to cigarettes while 14 per cent started smoking.

“Our worst-case scenarios have come true,” said Valérie Gallant, spokesperson for the CDVQ, in a news release on Sunday. “Only six months after the abolition of flavours, young people are vaping more than ever, and smokers who had stopped smoking, thanks to vaping, have started smoking again.”

Vapes should be regulated

As less harmful alternatives to cigarettes

An addiction psychotherapist and board member of the Singapore Anti-Narcotics Association said vaping should be legalized and regulated like cigarettes as proper regulation could prevent youth use and provide smokers with a less harmful alternative to combustible cigarettes.

Speaking about Singapore, Andrew da Roza said the current penalties are adequate, but enforcement needs improvement. “No one really gets punished for vaping in Singapore, to be honest,” he said. “Even though the numbers are high, it is still very apparent in Singapore.”

Senate to Hold Hearings on…

“Youth Vaping Epidemic” or “Never Let a ‘Crisis’ Come to an End”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that, during 2023, the middle and high school student population using e‑cigarettes during the past thirty days dropped to just 7 percent, and teen e‑cigarette use fell from 14 percent to 10 percent between 2022 and 2023. Yet, the Senate Judiciary Committee plans to conduct hearings tomorrow on “Combatting the Youth Vaping Epidemic by Enhancing Enforcement Against Illegal E‑Cigarettes.”

The hearing will take place just two days after the Justice Department and Food and Drug Administration announced they have created a multi‐agency coalition of law enforcement organizations that includes the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the US Marshals Service, the Federal Trade Commission, and the US Postal Service to go after the underground trade in vaping materials.

Science-based or science fiction?

Can WHO stop kids from getting hooked? – Tiziana Cauli

Like every year since 1988, the World Health Organization (WHO) picked a theme for World No Tobacco Day, celebrated on 31st May.

The 2024 edition of the commemoration was dedicated to exposing practices used by the tobacco industry to “hook the next generation”, ensuring that new young users become its customers for life.

This is not the first time the day against tobacco has focused on youth protection. The 2020 edition highlighted the same theme of tactics used by the industry to attract young customers, and the 2008 campaign – which coincided with the WHO’s call for a worldwide ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship – advocated for a “tobacco-free youth”.

On this Day…2023

A look back at how things have moved on or otherwise….

Legislators Relying on Misinformation

Dave Cross, Planet of the Vapes

Consumers have responded to the European Union’s SANT Committee Hearing that believes policy makers need to focus on harm due to cigarettes. These decision-makers are formulating policy on the back of “misinformation” and “innate prejudice towards harm reduction”, according to the World Vapers’ Alliance. The Alliance has also taken aim at The World Health Organization (WHO)’s director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as he denounced vaping and denied it works to reduce harm.

The SANT (Subcommittee on Public Health) held a hearing on “Preventing non-communicable diseases” to focus on possible solutions, on 1 June.

Vaping More Effective….

Than Conventional Smoking Cessation Therapies

Vaping using nicotine e-cigarettes is more effective for smoking cessation than conventional nicotine replacement behavioral smoking cessation therapies, according to findings published in The American Journal of Medicine.

Investigators conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine how the safety and efficacy of vaping, with both nicotine and non-nicotine e-cigarettes, compared with that of conventional strategies for smoking cessation. A primary outcome was how nicotine e-cigarettes compared with non-e-cigarette smoking cessation therapies with respect to continuous abstinence from conventional cigarettes at 12 months; continuous abstinence at 6 months; point prevalence abstinence at 12 months; and point prevalence abstinence at 6 months.