Action to respond to the harm caused by new tobacco

On September 24 in Hanoi, VinFuture Foundation in collaboration with the University of Public Health organized the InnovaConect Conference with the theme "Prevention of new tobacco harms: Scientific evidence and experience in the world and in Vietnam".

The conference took place in person and online, connecting with the bridgeheads in Vietnam, Thailand and Australia, bringing together leading domestic and international medical experts.

Illustration photo.

Research by the University of Public Health supported by the Tobacco Control Foundation and Vital Strategies, a global public health organization, showed that during the period of October - December 2023, over 3,801 students from grades 6 to 12 in 11 provinces and cities in Vietnam.

Results: 96.2% and 37.8% of students were aware of the existence of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, respectively. Of these, 14% had tried e-cigarettes and 7% were currently using them in the past 30 days. The rate for heated tobacco products was 1.8% had ever used them and 1.0% were currently using them.

The use of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products among Vietnamese youth is high, especially when compared with indicators of traditional cigarette use.

Professor Hoang Van Minh, Principal of the University of Public Health, said that this is a worrying trend, because it could reverse efforts to control tobacco use among adolescents that have been vigorously implemented over the past many years.

In particular, high scores in both trial and current users of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products may even lead to future increases in traditional cigarette use.

The nicotine addiction that develops during e-cigarette use can lead to a “transition” to traditional tobacco products.

Not only in Vietnam, the rate of youth using new tobacco products has also increased rapidly in many countries over the past 10 years.

The appeal of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco devices with their trendy designs, diverse flavors and sophisticated advertising campaigns has led many people, especially teenagers, to mistakenly believe that these products are safer than traditional cigarettes.

According to Associate Professor Becky Freeman, an expert from the School of Public Health, University of Sydney (Australia), tobacco companies are using sophisticated advertising tactics to attract young people, especially through social networks.

They create attractive images, use celebrities to promote their products, and spread misinformation about the safety of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products.

Agreeing with this view, Ms. Bungon Ritthiphakdee, Executive Director of the Global Tobacco Governance and Control Center (GGTC, Thailand) commented that the tobacco industry is trying to avoid management regulations by introducing new products such as e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products, to cope with increasingly strict regulations on traditional cigarettes.

“E-cigarettes and heated tobacco products also contain addictive nicotine, potentially creating a new generation of nicotine addicts,” warned experts from the Center for Global Tobacco Management and Control.

Affirming that e-cigarettes are dangerous and harmful to health, Ms. Bungon Ritthiphakdee, Executive Director of GGTC (Thailand) warned that e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products also contain addictive nicotine, potentially creating a new generation addicted to nicotine.

In fact, the global medical community has also recorded a number of cases of e-cigarette-associated lung injury, also known as EVALI. Accordingly, new tobacco products are believed to have negative impacts on health, especially on the developing brains of minors.

“The Singapore government wants to protect our future generations and that is why they decided to completely ban new tobacco products such as e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products,” Ms Ritthiphakdee shared.

It is known that currently in the world, there are at least 34 countries and territories that have completely banned e-cigarette products, and 11 countries that have banned the sale of heated tobacco products.

Typically, in Singapore, since February 2018, the government has completely banned the purchase, use and possession of tobacco products such as e-cigarettes, shisha and smokeless tobacco.

Source: https://baodautu.vn/hanh-dong-de-ung-pho-voi-tac-hai-do-thuoc-la-moi-gay-ra-d225745.html