In the UK, smoking and vaping are regulated by the same laws.
Tobacco products cannot be sold to anyone under the age of 18 according to this law.
The number of children vaping has increased, according to data from Action on Smoking (ASH).
The percentage of kids who acknowledged trying the goods increased from 14% in 2020 to 16% in 2022.
Additionally, it showed that the percentage of kids who vape is increasing, from 4% in 2020 to 7% in 2022.
It was previously reported that producers were employing tempting colours and packaging to pull in a younger audience. As a result, the products are increasingly being marketed at children.
As part of a slew of new rules on the sale and promotion of nicotine inhalation items, cabinet ministers have now now agreed to forbid the sale of vaping products from self-service vending machines.
The measures, according to health minister Stephen Donnelly, are intended to prevent young people from starting to vape.
The sale of e-cigarettes will be prohibited at venues for minors as well as on temporary or movable premises under the new regulations, which were approved earlier this week.
E-cigarette advertisements will also no longer be permitted in theatres, close to schools, or on public transportation.
Other measures will include the imposition of fixed penalty notices and suspension periods for retailers found guilty of violations.
The suggestions will be included in the Public Health (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill that is currently being written.
By the end of the year, it should be finished and released.
Mr. Donnelly stated: “We are acting today to make these items less accessible to our young people and to remove the promotion for these products from their daily lives. We recognise that nicotine is a highly addictive poison.”
E-cigarettes, according to junior minister Frank Feighan, who is in charge of public health, are “of no advantage” to kids and teenagers.
He remarked, “Tobacco use continues to kill about 4,500 people in our nation every year.
“We acknowledge that some adult smokers utilise nicotine inhalation products to help them stop smoking.
But we are clear that these items are harmful to our kids and teenagers and nonsmokers, which is why we are taking this step right now.
The new regulation will assist in regulating any product or part of a product that can be used to consume nicotine-containing vapour.
Children under the age of nine are being admitted to hospitals with lung issues related to vaping, according to recent data from NHS Digital.
National Heart and Lung Institute Professor Andrew Bush said: “According to Public Health England, they are 95% less dangerous than cigarettes. That assertion is supported by no data; rather, it is the consensus of a group of experts.
“I firmly believe that our younger generation is being lured into developing a nicotine addiction.”
The Sun on Sunday reported earlier this year that the overall number of hospital admissions connected to vaping had nearly doubled in the past 12 months.
344 cases were reported by doctors last year. There were 177 admissions in 2019–20.
Despite the fact that vaping is thought to be far safer than smoking, there are mounting worries regarding the introduction of ever-more potent vapes.
Although you must be 18 to purchase a vape, many of them are marketed toward youngsters and teenagers who can simply purchase them online without any age checks.
Ref. https://www.thesun.co.uk/health/20524316/major-change-vaping-rules-e-cigarettes-banned/
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