At a newsagent’s shop in northern Dublin, a woman and her small boy are buying a litre of milk and a chocolate bar. Behind the shop owner, a vibrant array of boxes in various shades are arranged, identical to a spectrum of colours. The labels on these boxes read: pink lemonade, mango, blueberry, sour raspberry, and watermelon ice. The deceptive packaging doesn’t reveal that these are not intended for children or adolescents.
They are vapes, which frequently contain nicotine and pose potential threats to the health of the public. Although more research is required to fully comprehend the long-term health risks.
The appearance of such products in stores might soon be different, as the government is considering some changes. Stephen Donnelly, Health Minister, has recently received approval from the government to impose additional restrictions on nicotine inhaling products.
Under the new general scheme, it is suggested that there would be a prohibition on the display and advertising of these items at sale points, except in shops that primarily deal with such products. Additional regulations will limit the colours and images on packages and devices to make them less enticing to young individuals. Descriptions of flavours apart from the basic ones will also be forbidden.
The proposed legislation also recommends a ban on single-use or disposable vapes’ importation, production, and sale.
This innovative approach to regulations has received much praise from numerous health organisations, inclusive of the Irish Heart Foundation. This foundation previously labeled vaping an “epidemic” among young individuals and stressed the requirement for dedicated aid to assist teenagers and young adults in quitting.
Chris Macey, the director of advocacy at the charity, proclaimed the announcement of these restrictions to be a “landmark day”.
It serves as another step toward reducing nicotine’s detrimental influence on public health in the State. The Government’s plans include raising the legal smoking age to 21, a year after a prohibition on the sale of disposable vapes to individuals under 18 was enforced.
Regulating the use of disposable vapes presents difficulty, but Ireland is not alone in this challenge. Numerous countries are working towards eradicating the use of these devices and this collective action could aid in the enforcement of these regulations. For example, Denmark has prohibited all e-liquid flavours except for tobacco. At the commencement of the coming year, Belgium will outlaw disposable vapes, with the UK and Northern Ireland set to follow suit.
Back in March, The New Zealand government intimated its plan to ban the retail of disposable e-cigarettes and enhance regulation of ecommerce vendors, increasing their penalties for selling to minors.
However, these nations are still in the nascent stage of enforcing such regulations. Australia seems to be at the forefront of this initiative, having since July made reusable vaping devices available exclusively via prescription from a pharmacist. Although this rule has been somewhat relaxed with the announcement that adults can purchase vapes over-the-counter from pharmacists from October onwards, these customers will need to provide proof of age, over 18, and be approved by the pharmacists.
Furthermore, the amount of nicotine in vapes sold without a prescription will be capped at 20mg per millilitre, with vape devices that have higher nicotine concentrations still requiring a prescription. The flavours will be limited to mint, menthol, and tobacco, and all vape items will necessitate standard pharmaceutical packaging. Retailers or individuals found engaging in illegal import of vapes for resale could face punitive actions including hefty fines of up to 2.2 million Australian dollars (€1.2 million) and possible imprisonment for up to seven years.
As far as regulation enforcement goes, other nations’ strategies could guide Irish officials. Nonetheless, it’s impossible to completely prevent people from purchasing vapes, as Health Minister Stephen Donnelly concedes. He said the possibility of consumers buying from other countries is inevitable. Also, he admitted that just like the ban on class A drugs, the policy would not result in a complete prohibition.
“Obtaining Class A drugs may still be possible, albeit it’s considerably harder compared to the ease of buying them in stores. A similar situation is expected,” so said the associations of vape sellers, who claim that the suggested vape legislation would merely drive the sale of such products underground, giving rise to a black market.
Prof Des Cox, a specialist in paediatric respiratory treatment at Children’s Health Ireland, expressed that the fear of a flourishing black market has become one of the major concerns regarding nicotine regulations. Despite this, he forecasts that there would be no significant surge in black market activities following the implementation of vape restrictions.
Prof Cox also mentioned that both the UK and Northern Ireland are looking to enforce akin restrictions on vaping devices, leading to a ban across borders. He added, “People will no longer have the convenience of heading up north to get them, making it all the more difficult. Furthermore, the EU also has plans to set vape limits throughout the bloc.”
Even so, Prof Cox was of the view that the government could still impose stricter regulations than what’s proposed currently. He was sceptical of plans of raising legal smoking age to 21, stating it negates the role of vapes as a cessation tool for those under 21. He suggested implementing even stricter age restrictions.
The drive behind vape restrictions worldwide is not just for health reasons, but majorly due to its environmental implications. The problem is particularly acute with disposable vapes which are often discarded improperly.
Dr Jason Power, an academic at the University of Limerick who lectures in manufacturing, materials and design engineering, expressed that disposable vapes are “indisputably a dreadful idea” from a materials, environmental, and technology standpoint. If incorrectly disposed in a standard recycling or landfill, they can lead to fires, thereby destroying infrastructure and releasing harmful toxins. He stated, “Their usual designs make them unfit for straightforward or automated disassembly, hence material recovery is unfeasible.”
However, the chief reason for a crackdown on vaping is its escalating popularity among children and teenagers. Originally deemed a safer smoking alternative, vaping has now become a preferred product among youths.
The Healthy Ireland Survey, an annual health poll conducted by the Government, disclosed that within the last year, 20% of females and girls between the ages of 15 to 24, the largest demographic for e-cigarettes, partake in regular (11%) or sporadic (9%) vaping. Parallel figures for males of the same age show 9% daily vapers and 7% occasional users.
Substantial evidential growth surrounds the health hazards linked to vaping. A recent study by the Royal College of Surgeons (RCSI) in Ireland scrutinised all 180 discovered e-liquid flavour compounds, determining the novel compounds that develop during heating in a vaping tool right before inhalation.
The findings illuminated the creation of multiple dangerous chemicals. Among them were 127 classified as “acutely toxic”, 153 as “health hazards” and 225 as “irritants”. A prominent chemical group discovered were volatile carbonyls (VCs), substances notorious for threatening health. The survey predicted that the top sources of VCs would be the most popular fruit, candy and dessert-flavoured vaping products.
Donal O’Shea, who leads the Department of Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry at the RCSI, opined that the combo of flavourful and disposable vapes significantly contributed to the swift increase of vaping amidst the youth, majority of whom never smoked before. He also stated that Ireland’s former global command in tobacco control, specifically the indoor smoking ban, presents an opportunity for the nation to become pioneers on the vaping issue.
He said, “The incoming laws promise to bring extensive public health advantages and it’s improbable that future generations will appreciate us for deliberately leading the path for another addictive health debacle to take place”.