A Comparison of Attitudes towards E-cigarettes in the UK and Canada

Smoking affects the most vulnerable

According to a study by the University of East Anglia (UEA), 70% of homeless people smoke in the United Kingdom, as announced in an article published on BBC News. In this situation, London South Bank University (LSBU) and University College London are leading a research project to assess whether e-cigarettes help homeless people quit smoking and whether they offer good value for money. For example, homeless centres in five regions of the UK, including London, Scotland and Wales, will provide 480 people with starter kits or care group sessions. Half of the contributors will be offered e-cigarettes, while the other 240 people will be assigned to a care group.

LSBU Professor Lynne Dawkins said in a previous trial that the kits “worked well”, and staff at homeless centres were able to support the study. In collaboration with UEA, Kings College London, Queen Mary University of London, York University, Cardiff University, University of Stirling and the University of Edinburgh, the project of 1 £.7 million was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR).

UEA’s Professor Caitlin Notley said studies suggested e-cigarettes were “more helpful” than nicotine gum or patches when people were trying to quit smoking: “If we find that providing kits free e-cigarette starter packs help people quit smoking, homeless centres may decide to adopt this approach in the future, to help reduce the impact of smoking-related illnesses on homeless people”, she said.

Aromas and young people

According to an article on Global News, the Canadian government wants to ban flavourings, except for classic and mint. According to Patty Hadju, Canadian Minister of Health: “Vaping is putting a new generation of Canadians at risk for nicotine addiction. (…) These new measures build on our efforts to prevent young Canadians from vaping.”

Nicotine is limited to 20 mg.

Like the TPD, the Canadian government is also planning to lower the maximum nicotine strength for vaping products sold in Canada from 66 mg/ml to 20 mg/ml. According to Jennifer May, a member of the Lung Association of Saskatchewan, advocating for improved lung health, “vaping product sellers have not demonstrated that they are responsible enough.”

The reaction of the Canadian Vaping Association

Canadian Vaping Association, an association that campaigns for the defence of the rights of Canadian vapers, protests the introduction of these new regulations. She launched a petition that has collected nearly 15,000 signatures, to which the government paid no attention. In this video, Darryl Tempest, a member of this activist association, believes that the government is attacking a risk reduction tool allowing many smokers to quit smoking successfully.