# Vitality Institute: Electronic cigarettes safer than tobacco



## Alex (3/6/15)

*Electronic cigarettes safer than tobacco, says Vitality Institute*
by Tamar Kahn, 02 June 2015, 18:26






Damien Hoops uses an electronic cigarette at The Vapor Spot bar in Los Angeles in this 2014 file photo. Picture: REUTERS

VITALITY Institute head Derek Yach on Tuesday urged doctors to promote electronic (e)-cigarettes to their smoking patients, saying they offered a safer alternative to traditional tobacco products. Tobacco products kill six million people a year, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO)

His remarks are not likely to sit well with Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, who has previously expressed deep concern over the growing use of e-cigarettes, which are increasingly marketed by tobacco companies. He has also indicated he intends to amend the Tobacco Products Control Act to regulate e-cigarettes.

E-cigarettes are battery-powered devices that mimic smoking behaviour without the tobacco. Instead, they deliver a vapour of flavoured nicotine to their users. Manufacturers of e-cigarettes market their potential to help smokers reduce or give up traditional tobacco products such as cigarettes, but their benefits are fiercely contested.

Dr Yach, who previously worked for the WHO and helped develop its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, made the case for e-cigarettes, arguing they separated "clean" nicotine from the harmful tar found in tobacco and therefore offered users a less harmful product.

"I think we are at the stage where we have sufficient evidence to be comfortable that (for) a smoker who wants to quit or reduce their exposure to tobacco products... using an e-cigarette is a good choice," he said at a media lunch sponsored by the Electronic-cigarette Association of SA (EASA).

Public health policy should continue to tighten the control of tobacco products with interventions such as taxes and advertising bans, and at the same time promote the harm reduction potential of e-cigarettes, said Dr Yach. E-cigarettes should also be regulated to ensure consumers had reliable products, he said.

EASA chairman Philip Bartholomew said the local industry supported "appropriate" regulation.

National Council Against Smoking executive director Yussuf Saloojee said e-cigarettes had potential to reduce the harm caused by tobacco products, but not enough was known about their safety.

Dr Salooje said e-cigarettes should strictly speaking be sold only in pharmacies, because they contain nicotine which is a schedule three substance under the Medicines and Related Substances Act. However, this aspect of the law was not being enforced and they were widely available, he said.

source: http://www.bdlive.co.za/life/health...es-safer-than-tobacco-says-vitality-institute

Reactions: Like 5


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## MarkDBN (3/6/15)

Still amazes me that the recommendations are for anything except stinkies to be dispensed at a pharmacy. Funny that every petrol station around the world can sell analogues... But a reduced risk option, that you have to get from big pharma of course.

Reactions: Like 3 | Agree 4


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## nemo (3/6/15)

MarkDBN said:


> Still amazes me that the recommendations are for anything except stinkies to be dispensed at a pharmacy. Funny that every petrol station around the world can sell analogues... But a reduced risk option, that you have to get from big pharma of course.


Gets my goat too, Dr Salooje I think you should focus more on these illegal imported tobacco products sold from under the counters to under aged kids. You are well aware of the dangers of smoking tobacco products but yet they are not sold in pharmacies at all that I have noticed in JHB. Once you can get that under control then try and address a community that respects both smokers and non smokers alike about the life style choices they have made.

I agree to have some sort of control to allow tested safe products into the country and being distributed but how in the hell is regulating it through a pharmacy going to help? I think the problem lies with these people being uneducated about vaping as much. For example what about 0% nicotine juice or the technologies to create the devices, are we suddenly have to start buying electronic components and batteries at pharmacies too? I stopped smoking for about 2 years and all it took was one stressful event in my life to start smoking again so the nonsense about it has not been guaranteed to stop you smoking and such in my point is no argument to me. All smokers I know that has started vaping is because they wanted to be healthier, whether that is finding an alternative or stopping.
Many people want to stop smoking but cannot deal with the cravings whether it be craving for nicotine or your brain needing those relaxing behaviours that we developed over the years.

Sorry I do tend to rant and rave a bit about things that I am passionate about and I think it's sort of getting of the heading of the post.
I am delighted to see that there are people out there that knows the difference between smoking and vaping, and starting to realise from the evidence of studies on nicotine and all the current data out there already that is the products of smoking that has the potential to do so much harm.

Reactions: Agree 1


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