Vapers Digest 17th March

Monday’s News at a glance:

Open Letter to the EU ~ Positive Swiss Flavour Study ~ Industry Bodies Offer Compliance Advice ~ New CoEHAR Umbrella review: no significant impact on lung function with E-cigarette use ~ Nicotine is Harmful for the Developing Brain – Or is it? ~ FDA Educational Efforts Prevented Nearly 450,000 Youth from Starting E-Cigarette Use in One Year ~ UK to consult on vape packaging “as soon as possible” once Bill gains Royal Assent ~ #WordsMatter ~ Proposed State Tax Bills Would Make Vaping More Expensive ~ Whitmer vape tax plan would ban most flavors as ‘contraband’ ~ Proposed New York nicotine pouch ban raising concerns from veterans ~ ‘EC tobacco policies will only boost illicit trade,’ expert warns ~ Foreign funding influences questioned in regional Tobacco Harm Reduction policies ~ YouTube Strikes Again: Grimm Green’s Channel Demonetized Without Explanation ~ WORLD-LEADING EXPERTS JOIN #GFN25 LINEUP | Featuring #GFN25 Programme Director Jessica Harding

Three From Dave Cross, Planet of the Vapes

Open Letter to the EU

The World Vapers’ Alliance (WVA) has released an open letter to the European Commission and European Union member states, strongly opposing recent proposals for stricter regulations on tobacco harm-reduction products. The measures are being spearheaded by the Netherlands and are supported by a minority of member states.

Positive Swiss Flavour Study

Swiss researchers have published a study in the Tobacco Prevention and Cessation journal showing eliquid flavours work to reduce smoking and the volume of nicotine consumed. They state that after 6 months exclusive e-cigarette users used more fruity-flavoured e-liquids and chose a lower mean nicotine concentration than dual users.

Industry Bodies Offer Compliance Advice

Industry trade bodies the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA) and the Independent British Vape Trade Association (IBVTA) are offering retailers advice on how to be compliant with the forthcoming changes to vape legislation. Unfortunately, this comes against a backdrop where some manufacturers are being lax with product quality and labelling.

Center of Excellence for the acceleration of Harm Reduction (CoEHAR)

– The study systematically reviewed the respiratory effects of e-cigarette (EC) use, distinguishing between dual use, exclusive use, and naïve use.

– Twelve systematic reviews were analyzed

– No significant changes in respiratory function were observed across all patterns of use in the short or medium term.

Nicotine is Harmful for the Developing Brain – Or is it?

Diane Caruana, Vaping Post

Researchers continue to debate nicotine’s impact on the adolescent brain, with new research indicating that pre-existing factors influence addiction susceptibility more than nicotine itself.

Several studies suggest that nicotine exposure during adolescence may negatively impact brain development. Since the brain continues maturing until the mid-20s, researchers believe that nicotine can interfere with critical processes related to memory, attention, and impulse control. Moreover, research indicates that adolescent nicotine use may alter neural pathways, potentially increasing susceptibility to addiction and cognitive deficits later in life.

FDA Educational Efforts Prevented Nearly 450,000 Youth from Starting E-Cigarette Use in One Year

U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Today, a study co-authored by U.S. Food and Drug Administration scientists was released showing the agency’s youth e-cigarette prevention campaign, “The Real Cost,” successfully reduced e-cigarette use among youth. The campaign, which launched in 2018 under the leadership of President Trump, was found to have prevented an estimated 444,252 American youth (age 11 to 17 at study recruitment) from starting to use e-cigarettes between 2023 and 2024.

The new study, published in the peer-reviewed scientific journal American Journal of Preventive Medicine, found evidence that the campaign contributed to the nearly 70% decline in e-cigarette use among American youth that has occurred since 2019. According to the National Youth Tobacco Survey, the number of U.S. middle and high school students who currently use e-cigarettes has declined from 5.38 million in 2019 to 1.63 million in 2024, the lowest level in a decade.

UK to consult on vape packaging “as soon as possible” once Bill gains Royal Assent

Ali Anderson, Clearing The Air

The UK government will open consultations to regulate vape packaging “as soon as possible after the Bill gains Royal Assent”, it has confirmed.

Minister for Public Health and Prevention Ashley Dalton said the bright colours and “child-friendly features” of most vape packaging is too appealing to children.

However, she added that it is important to consider the needs of adult smokers looking to switch to a safer alternative.

Skip Murray, Skip’s Corner – Let’s Talk!

Tobacco, Smoking, and Nicotine. Some people try to make all three mean the same thing, and many already think of them as the same. They are not the same thing! While many of my readers know this (sorry to preach to the choir!), much of the public does not.

In 2016, the FDA waved a magic wand and took nonmedical products that contained nicotine but no tobacco and “deemed” them a tobacco product. It surprised me how many people embraced that. When I asked them why that made sense to them, they’d say, “Because nicotine comes from tobacco.”

Proposed State Tax Bills Would Make Vaping More Expensive

Jim McDonald, Vaping 360

Taxing vapes is popular among state legislators. As of March 25, 33 U.S. states—along with the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and numerous cities and counties—have imposed taxes on vapor products.

Taxes are usually assessed on distributors and wholesalers, and may be imposed as a percentage of the retail price or on a per-milliliter basis on bottled e-liquid or all products that contain e-liquid. Some states have retail taxes paid directly by consumers. Taxes range from states that assess a five-cents-per-milliliter e-liquid tax to Vermont’s champion 92 percent wholesale tax.

Whitmer vape tax plan would ban most flavors as ‘contraband’

Jordyn Hermani, Bridge Michigan

– Michigan could ban many vape products under Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s proposal to tax e-cigarettes in the name of public health

– The plan would ban the sale of non-FDA approved vaping products and calls for seizing and removing them from store shelves

– Ban would include most flavored vapes. Whitmer tried to ban them before in 2019 but courts overturned the emergency order

Proposed New York nicotine pouch ban raising concerns from veterans

Christopher Oldcorn, Western Standard

A proposed ban on nicotine pouches in New York state is causing concern among veterans groups and health advocates who say the products can be an effective way to quit smoking.

Nicotine pouches, which provide nicotine without the tar or many of the toxic chemicals found in combustible cigarettes, are recognized by the US Food and Drug Administration as “appropriate for the protection of public health.”

Vaping a way to cut smoking death toll?

Dave Kendall, Bangkok Post

An average of 47 people in Thailand die from smoking cigarettes every day, while there has not been a single recorded death here from using e-cigarettes.

Millions of people have successfully used vaping to quit smoking, and many countries actively promote vaping as a means to quit the deadly habit. Yet conventional cigarettes are available in every Thai convenience store, while e-cigarettes are illegal. Government officials and news headlines trumpet the supposed dangers of vaping, but stay silent on smoking even as it kills 71,000 Thais every year – the single biggest preventable cause of death.

Click to visit Danish Vapers Association

‘EC tobacco policies will only boost illicit trade,’ expert warns

Carl Deconinck, Brussels Signal

Government policies on tobacco and nicotine products promoted by the European Commission are inadvertently fuelling the illicit trade, an expert has warned

Clive Bates, former director of Action on Smoking and Health and a long-time advocate against cigarette smoking and the influence of “Big Tobacco”, told Brussels Signal on March 14 that high taxation and excessive regulations were pushing consumers to the black market.

Foreign funding influences questioned in regional Tobacco Harm Reduction policies

Risingbd.com

The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) called for greater transparency in global tobacco control governance, citing evidence of external influence in domestic policymaking across Asia-Pacific.

The organisation has documented patterns suggesting Bloomberg Philanthropies has exercised inappropriate influence over tobacco harm reduction policies in the Philippines, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Vietnam, said a press release.

Nancy Loucas, CAPHRA’s Executive Coordinator, expressed concern with what the organisation perceives as ideologically-driven approaches. “When foreign billionaires shape national health policies through strategic funding while excluding regional experts, we must question whether public health remains the priority,” Loucas stated.

YouTube Strikes Again: Grimm Green’s Channel Demonetized Without Explanation

For over 16 years, Nick “Grimm Green” has been a pillar of the vaping community, creating thousands of videos and live streams to educate and inform adult vapers. But now, his entire livelihood is at risk—YouTube has suddenly demonetized his channel without a clear reason.

A Longstanding Creator, Silenced Without Explanation

Nick took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his frustration, stating:“I’ve been on this platform for 16 years, 2K+ videos, 400+ live streams. This is my entire livelihood and I make it my business to know and follow the rules. Why was my monetization turned off? Who knows?”

WORLD-LEADING EXPERTS JOIN #GFN25 LINEUP | Featuring #GFN25 Programme Director Jessica Harding

Global Forum on Nicotine

In this very special episode we’re joined by Jessica Harding, Programme Director of this year’s Global Forum on Nicotine conference! We unpack the A-list lineup of guest speakers, plenaries and much much more that you can expect at #GFN25 which takes place 19 – 21 June 2025.

On this Day…2023

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

Sweet Jesus, not plain packaging again!

Christopher Snowdon, Velvet Glove Iron Fist

Oh joy, a new study… They showed a bunch of people some mocked up e-cigarette packaging, some of which was ‘plain’/grotesque, and found that people preferred the normal packaging. Fancy that!

The people were also less likely to say they would try vaping if the packaging was ‘plain’. I suppose they would, wouldn’t they?

Internal FDA Report on Smokeless Tobacco

Dashes Hopes for Vaping – Brad Rodu

Kudos to Greg Conley, director of legislative affairs for the American Vapor Manufacturers Association, for making public an internal FDA Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) report, titled, “Summary of Health Effects of Smokeless Tobacco [SLT] Products for Epidemiology Branch Product Application Review.” Mr. Conley used a Freedom of Information Act request to obtain the 18-page document.

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