Single-use vapes ‘harm children and the environment and should be banned’: Experts say devices hook young people to nicotine and contain plastic and batteries
Single-use e-cigarettes are a ‘rapidly increasing threat,’ say health groups
Therese Coffey and Health Secretary Steve Barclay wrote an open letter
Cheap vaporizers are getting kids hooked on nicotine, it’s claimed
Approximately 1.3 million disposable vaping devices are thrown away every week
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Disposable vaporizers pose a danger to children’s health and the environment and should be banned, doctors and charities warned yesterday.
Single-use e-cigarettes are a “rapidly growing threat,” according to health and environmental groups who wrote an open letter to Environment Secretary Therese Coffey and Health Secretary Steve Barclay.
Signatories include the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, the RSPCA and the Marine Conservation Society.
Cheap vapes, which come in fruity flavors that appeal to young people, are claimed to be getting kids hooked on nicotine.
File photo: Single-use e-cigarettes are a “rapidly growing threat,” according to health and environmental groups who wrote an open letter to Environment Secretary Therese Coffey and Health Secretary Steve Barclay.
The letter states: ‘Acceptance among young people is particularly concerning, with several health professionals warning that instead of helping existing smokers to kick the habit, they could create a new generation hooked on nicotine.
“The harms of vaping are not yet fully established, but there are concerns about the increased risk of chronic lung conditions.”
The groups also argue that disposable vapes are “unnecessary electrical items” containing single-use plastic, nicotine and batteries, all of which are “dangerous to the environment and wildlife when discarded.”
About 1.3 million disposable vape devices are thrown away every week, or two every second, enough to fill 22 football fields a year, according to research from Material Focus.
The groups say that because reusable vapes are available, banning single-use e-cigarettes would not stop public health efforts to help people quit smoking or the government’s commitment to a smoke-free generation for 2030.
Libby Peake, from the Green Alliance environmental think tank that organized the letter, said: “We need to move towards durable and reusable products designed in a sustainable way, without inventing new ways to cause harm to wildlife and waste valuable resources.”
File photo: About 1.3 million disposable vaping devices are thrown away every week, or two every second, enough to fill 22 football fields a year.
It comes as US researchers found that people who vape have a higher risk of tooth decay.
And vaping seems to encourage cavities in areas where they don’t normally occur, like the lower edges of front teeth.
An earlier study, published in the journal PLOS one, compared e-cigarettes with sweets and sour drinks.