I don’t ever tell someone to stop doing what they’re doing. But if somebody is using an e-cigarette, that tells me it’s filling some gap for him. – Frank T. Leone, director of comprehensive smoking treatment programmes at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
In 2016, vaping was all the rage. To some, it was a “healthier alternative” to smoking.
E-cigarettes were praised as having less harmful and toxic substances than cigarettes, and have gained a whopping 41 million users around the world as of 2018 (BBC News, 2019).
Some doctors, public health experts as well as cancer charities in the United Kingdom have also agreed that the usage of e-cigarettes carry but a fraction of the risks related to cigarette smoking.
It is all great on paper, however, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has cited several health risks associated with e-cigarette usage, such as the inflammation of the airways due to the irritants present within e-cigarettes (usually in the sweeter flavored ones), nicotine poisoning due to spillage of vape liquid on the skin, as well as the unknown long-term effects of usage.
Recently, the United States’ regulatory and public health agencies have been looking into three different public health related problems, such as exploding e-cigarettes, seizures, as well as lung diseases.
Earlier this month, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that cases relating to lung illnesses have risen by a quarter compared to a week before.
At least 18 deaths as well as more than 1,000 cases of mysterious lung diseases were due to the usage of e-cigarettes (or vaping) by the US health authorities (BBC News, 2019).
The symptoms of said mysterious illnesses include severe pneumonia and respiratory failure, all of which, when combined may become fatal to the sufferers.
However, it is not yet known what substance within the vape smoke or liquid that is causing this outbreak.
The United States’ health investigators have yet to establish whether a particular substance or heavy usage could be the culprit.
The Trump administration has plans to ban fruity flavored vapes or e-cigarettes as a means to curb as well as discourage the American public, especially the youth, from vaping.
In Malaysia, some incidents of exploding e-cigarettes became a great concern for its users, where some accidents left the sufferers blind, and even dead.
Earlier this year, a 24-year-old man died from having his vape pen explode in his face.
That aside, children as young as 13 years old have taken up vaping as a habit.
Nowadays, it easy to obtain an e-cigarette or vape, as it is not as closely regulated as cigarettes. In order to purchase cigarettes, the buyers or users must be at least 18 years of age, whereas e-cigarettes can be easily purchased online.
This is especially dangerous as again, the long-term effects of vaping are still unknown, but if the happenings within the United States are taken into account, the future of these young users will not be pretty.
The array of e-cigarette flavours to choose from also make the vape problem that much worse. The e-cigarette liquids are typically spiked with sugary and addictive flavours, such as caramel, toffee, chocolate and even Yakult!
Their sweet tastes may sway some youngsters into believing that they might not be that dangerous for them, and at times, may even encourage vaping. A large amount of these “sweet flavours” actually contain nicotine in them, making them that much more addictive.
Earlier this year, the Malaysian Health Ministry confiscated around 66,998 bottles of nicotine tainted e-cigarette liquid, worth RM1.4 mln, from 78 premises, that were selling the products to unsuspecting school children.
It is clear that this vape issue needs to be put under control, and the Malaysian government plans on doing exactly that.
Recently, the government intends to group e-cigarettes with tobacco products, such as cigarettes and such, under a single law that would prohibit their promotion and advertising, usage in public areas, and use by minors (Aljazeera News, 2019).
The proposal of this law has indeed stirred up mixed views from both ends of the spectrum, with the e-cigarettes users stating that the products are “not that dangerous compared to cigarettes”, and the parents and non-users who fully support the proposal and feel that “they can be as dangerous as cigarettes”.
The truth of the matter, in my opinion, is that prevention is better than cure. If e-cigarettes are regulated as tightly as other tobacco products, as least this will show aspiring users or youths that these products are not “trendy”, and like other substances, will have consequences on their health.
Indeed, many may argue that it is still too early to label e-cigarettes as legitimately harmful, but looking to the happenings that have recently occurred in the United States, I say that it is better to be safe than sorry.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the New Sarawak Tribune.
