3 minute read
Checkmate
The Korea Biomedical Review have reported that South Korea’s Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) have urged organisers of the 2023 Korea Vape Show to cancel the event. The Ministry are concerned that the advertised vaping competitions will violate indoor smoking restrictions, so will complete an inspection of the venue to check for a suitable enclosed vaping room. The event organisers are not putting plans on hold, having already submitted strategies to resolve any issues raised by critics, ensuring that the convention isn’t cancelled weeks before meaning to go ahead.
Secretary of State said: “I think the current view of the department is that the risks (of vaping) are a fraction of the risks of smoking cigarettes. “But clearly it is an area where the data is evolving.” The British Government intend to examine the bans and restrictions in Australia, keen to learn ‘lessons’ on how to better strengthen measures that will protect children from e-cigarettes in the UK.
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MISSION Impossible
Turkmenistan’s leader has launched a countrywide anti-smoking campaign, ordering the Central Asian country to rid itself completely of tobacco within two years. President Serdar Berdymukhamedov latest order involves a clampdown on illegal importations of tobacco products and their sales, including shisha pipes and electronic cigarettes. “Our state will launch a vast anti-tobacco movement of unprecedented size to help expand the tobacco-less countries of the world,” Strict measures — including bans on advertising and smoking in public places — are already in place, with state shops acting as the only legal sellers of cigarettes and vapes.
CLEAR YOUR Mind
Researchers at the University of Oxford have discovered that quitting smoking can vastly help mental health for people with and without mental health conditions.
Smoking abstinence
– particularly between weeks nine and 24 – was associated with significant improvements in anxiety and depression. For this study, only data from USbased participants was used and included 4,260 current adult smokers –with over half diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder. In the UK, the number of people smoking who had a mental health condition has remained at 40 percent since 1993.
IS THIS THE END?
Local councils across the UK have called for disposables to be banned due to environmental and health issues. The Local Government Association (LGA) is campaigning for the sale and manufacturing for single use vapes by 2024, stating that the devices are a hazard for waste collection. In response to this proposed move, John Dunne, Director General of the UKVIA, said: “Most smokers have used, and continue to use, single use vapes to help them quit combustible cigarettes. “The ease of use of these products have played a key role in helping bring the UK smoking rate to an all-time low.
Pmi To Supply
Philip Morris International, owner of six global cigarette brands, is attempting to grow the intercontinental sales of its VEEV vaping products. The tobacco company have already made a deal with some pharmacies to supply their vaping products at a discounted price, despite their previous opposition to the Australian Government’s prescription model. Money is clearly the pivotal reason behind this business move, with the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia already issuing a warning to pharmacists to be sceptical of commercial offers from big tobacco companies.
Too Sweet To Handle
Germany has approved a draft amendment to their Tobacco Products Act bill, which formally bans the addition of vanilla, chocolate, and other heated tobacco flavours. According to the German Bundestag, the adopted expansion will further limit access to flavoured tobacco products as they have an “introductory effect” that could coerce non-smokers. The new law will come into play from October 23 of this year and is applicable to cigarettes and heating cigarettes. Although the new ban does not extend to vapes, officials have called for stronger restrictions on e-cigarettes with talks of potential future advertising bans.
Spick And Span
A new programme set to be rolled out across the country and backed by approval from the UK National Screening Committee could see up to 9000 cases of lung cancer prevented. GP records for current or former smokers between the ages of 55 and 74 will be assessed to determine the high-risk patients who can go for free lung cancer screenings. Following a successful earlier screening where 70% of screenings took place in mobile units, The Department of Health and Social Care aim to reach 100% of the eligible population by 2030.