“You don’t need a doctor’s appointment to buy cigarettes, why do you need a doctor’s appointment to get a 95 per cent less harmful option?” he said. He cited a 2016 report from the Royal College of Practitioners that found that the hazard to people’s health arising from inhaling vapour was only 5 per cent of the danger caused by smoking tobacco. ![]() The decision to make vapes only available in pharmaceutical settings isn’t logical, according to Dr Kosterich, as it will make vapes harder to obtain than regular cigarettes, which are more harmful. ![]() “Specifically among youth, the risk to brain development as a result of consuming nicotine, a common component in these devices, is particularly concerning.”ĭr Barnes argues that teens can easily access illegal vapes through convenience stores, which is why they should only be sold in pharmacies. “Whilst the long-term health impacts of vaping are still emerging, research shows that vaping can result in acute lung injury, poisoning, burns and toxicity through inhalation,” she said. However, Dr Kosterich’s arguments are being questioned by other experts who say the moves will help to stop a rise in young people taking up vaping.Īlthough vapes were introduced as a tool to help adults quit smoking, they’ve become a device to get young people hooked on tobacco products, according to University of Newcastle research fellow Courtney Barnes. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gaye Gerardĭr Kosterich urged the government to reconsider their prescription-based approach and to consider adopting the same stance as New Zealand, which supports smokers to switch to vaping while discouraging those who don’t use tobacco products from starting to use them. “Whilst some of these health organisations are patting each other on the back, people who are actually trying to give up smoking or people who have successfully given up smoking by vaping are going to be suffering,” he said. However, not everyone is convinced the reforms will do what the government hopes.Īustralian Tobacco Harm Reduction Association chairman Joe Kosterich said the reforms will block off a pathway for smokers to quit while not preventing children from getting their hands on addictive nicotine products. The move has been welcomed by health organisations such as the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), the Alcohol and Drug Foundation and the Public Health Association of Australia. “I’m just not willing as the nation’s Health Minister to normalise this product,” he said. Mr Butler described vaping as the “biggest loophole in Australian history” and the “No. The government will commit a further AU$140 million ($94 million) for a program helping Indigenous people stop smoking, which will be expanded to include vaping.Īustralia has one of the lowest smoking rates among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries, with 11.2% of Australians 15 and over smoking in 2019, according to government statistics.Australians will only be able to purchase a vape legally at a pharmacy with a prescription under the new laws. ![]() ![]() Support programs helping Australians quit vaping will be bolstered by an investment of AU$30 million ($20 million), and education among health practitioners about smoking and nicotine cessation will be strengthened. “Some people who vape, including young people, may be unknowingly consuming nicotine and have formed a dependence,” she said.Īn AU$63-million ($42-million) public health campaign will be launched to discourage Australians from taking up vaping and encourage those who already have to quit. Article contentĪlcohol and Drug Foundation CEO Erin Lalor said most people vaping in Australia were using unregulated products, with no idea what was in them. The nicotine in each toothpick is absorbed into the bloodstream via a time-released sublingual delivery system. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Zippix Nicotine Toothpicks satisfy nicotine cravings and provide oral gratification, without the offensive by-products of smoking, vaping, dipping or chewing.
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