A Challenge for Vaping
Depending on who you are, vaping can offer multiple benefits – or threats.
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by Dave Cross
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The Guardian reports researchers as saying that vaping may be able to help with a side effect of quitting smoking – weight gain. While some outlets chose to spin this as claims that electronic cigarettes could work as a weight loss method, Linda Bauld was quite precise in her wording.
She said: “People can change their nicotine content, so to quit smoking they might start off on a higher strength e-liquid and then they can taper down really quite gradually in a much more sophisticated way than they can with NRT, which is probably good for weight maintenance and for weight loss.”
Bauld continued: “You are re-filling the e-liquids, you might be mixing your own liquids, you are trying different flavours, you are doing things with your hands that take up time which means maybe you are not reaching for the bowl of M&Ms.”
An article for Chemist and Druggist noted that pharmacists are facing challenging quit targets while facing up to a decrease in the income they obtain from supporting smoking cessation. As a consequence the author ponders on whether they should embrace electronic cigarettes.
“Much of the reduction in smoking is attributed to the uptake of ‘vaping’, a habit described as “95% safer than smoking” – presumably in the same way that methadone is 95% safer than heroin. Personally, I don’t see this as a reduction in smoking, just a change in the manner of drug delivery,” the writer commented, unfortunately.
They explained: “At a recent ‘e-cigarette awareness event’, we were told that we’ll now be paid to support people changing from conventional smoking to vaping. This decision was taken by the council’s public health department. By their logic, a ‘vaper’ should be considered a ‘quitter’, even though they’re not actually quitting their addiction.”
It’s disappointing that even after a presentation of awareness raising evidence the image of vaping being the equivalent of smoking persisted. The logic holds, that an addiction to nicotine persists, but it is obvious that the message of harm reduction failed to be communicated effectively.
It’s a message that is still to penetrate university campuses in America as well. The University of Texas delights in not having four designated smoking zones any longer since the campus has gone ‘smoke free’. For students, this also means ‘no vaping’ in a move celebrated by the University of Tampa’s student newspaper. Florida, Florida State, Michigan and Ohio State have also gone ‘smoke free’ – “to guarantee the right of nonsmokers to breathe smoke-free air”. It labels vaping as nothing more than “a trend”, and its one they worry might have no end.
“I do still vape despite the rules. It hasn’t turned me off at all other than that I am more conscious about it,” said one student. “Yes, I still vape even though the school changed the rules. I just don’t do it in public places on campus. The rule didn’t turn me off to it,” another opined.
Meanwhile a professor in charge of public health noted the salient fact that “according to the state information in Florida, there has been an increase in the use of e-cigarettes and hookahs and a decrease in the use of conventional cigarettes.”
Do these institutions not owe a duty of care to their students and support to help them swap smoking for a far less dangerous activity? Should British pharmacists be actively promoting ecigs as a means to quit? Whatever the answer, a solution only comes through clear education of the facts and the message is being distorted.
Photo Credit:
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Cigarette tab - Pixabay
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
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