British pediatrician insists disposable e-cigarettes should be banned to protect children | UK news

Pediatricians are calling for a total ban on single-use e-cigarettes to reduce their popularity among young people, as their long-term effects on the lungs, heart and brain remain unknown.

The government should ban single-use e-cigarettes. E-cigarettes cost just £1.99 and are the most popular among young people, according to the Royal Society of Pediatrics and Children. health Said.

This reduces the environmental impact and discourages children who have never smoked from using e-cigarettes and exposing them to long-term addiction and lung damage.

Dr. Mike McKean, vice president and pediatric respiratory consultant at RCPH, said the university was “very thoughtful”, reflecting members’ concerns about the “epidemic” of childhood e-cigarettes and the limitations of long-term research. decision,” he said. Health impacts: The number of children with respiratory diseases is small but growing.

“It took decades to understand the link between smoking and cancer and respiratory disease. That’s it,” McKean said.

“Anyone who knows about lung development knows that inhaling potentially harmful and volatile substances is very likely to result in an inflammatory response that can have minor or significant effects. There is plenty of evidence that it causes significant coughing and shortness of breath, and although there are not many cases of severely injured lungs, cases have been reported where the inflammatory response is overwhelming and causes permanent scarring.”

He considers Australia’s approach to making e-cigarettes available only with a prescription, but

He said Britain’s permissive approach was “out of step” with its neighbours, including Scotland, France, Germany and Ireland. The UK has so far banned free samples of e-cigarettes for people under 18, and may also ban colorful packaging and flavor names that target young people.

He said ministers had the power to ban single-use e-cigarettes “easily” and would respond “as soon as possible” to requests for evidence on youth e-cigarettes to avoid the issue getting into legal trouble. I said I would like it. This request will close on June 6th. Political long grass ahead of the next general election. “If you’re 12 and you’re starting to smoke e-cigarettes regularly, you can’t wait for that 12-year-old to turn 13 or 14. You need to act now.”

He added that he believes companies have a “moral obligation” to prevent them from profiting from long-term addiction by targeting children with colorful packaging and fruity flavors.

With 1.3 million e-cigarettes thrown away every week in the UK, the ban would also reduce the negative environmental impact of e-cigarettes. E-cigarettes waste the lithium needed to power batteries for electric vehicles and add to plastic waste.

The number of young people smoking e-cigarettes is rising rapidly, with 1 in 5 15-year-olds expected to do so by 2021, according to the latest data from NHS Digital, with the figure expected to rise significantly this year. .action on smoking Health data also show that use of e-cigarettes among 11- to 17-year-olds has increased by 50% since last year.

A Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman said: “It is illegal to sell nicotine e-cigarettes to children, and we are concerned about the recent rise in adolescent e-cigarette use, especially because the long-term harm is unknown.” because it is.”

“We are taking bold action to crack down on youth e-cigarettes through our £3 million illegal e-cigarette squad to tackle underage marketing to children. We have identified opportunities to reduce the number of children who have access and use, and have also initiated a solicitation of evidence to explore how far the government can go further.”