FEATURE
Weighing up the health benefits of e-cigarettes versus combustible products
Reach – as well as its base in Hartlepool , Phoenix 2 Retail also has offices in Peterlee and Durham .
When it comes to the vaping and e-cigarette products his business sells , Chris Kelly , managing director of Phoenix 2 Retail , doesn ’ t shy away from controversy . “ My message is simple ,” he says . “ If you are not a smoker and have never smoked , do not use vaping products – ever !”
Some people would think this is counter-intuitive given the nature of his business .
But Chris saw his dad , a heavy smoker , suffer multiple heart attacks and wants his products to be part of a solution to the public health emergency that is smoking combustible cigarettes .
“ My approach has always been to try to turn things into a positive and reassure the market , your customers and the outside world who are not in the industry of the relative safety of your products compared to smoking cigarettes ,” he says .
“ There are 6.4m smokers in the UK and our mission is to ensure that they can buy smoking alternatives alongside their weekly shop at their favourite retailers , making it easy for them to enjoy a healthier lifestyle and reduce the risk of developing the diseases associated with combustible cigarettes .” Chris firmly believes vaping products are 95 % less harmful than cigarettes and because they are much less harmful , they are “ the biggest public health opportunity the country has in terms of their use to help people quit smoking ”.
“ Smoking is the biggest cause of preventable deaths that the country faces and it ’ s our view that anybody who has switched from smoking to vaping feels much better and they are much better off financially ,” he says .
“ Our industry has to address youngsters using the products – we have to overcome that - and Phoenix 2 Retail invests in 10,000 youth access visits every year , whereby we employ people who are 18 or 19 to try to buy the products to see if they are checked for ID .
“ We also train staff in the things they should be doing in relation to young people buying the products and we have to ensure the products are not attractive to children and young people .”
The Live Well section of the NHS website highlights the benefits of e-cigarettes to smokers who want to quit , recognising they have become a “ very popular stop smoking aid in the UK ”.
“ Also known as vapes or e-cigs , they ' re far less harmful than cigarettes , and can help you quit smoking for good ,” the NHS website states .
Echoing Chris ’ s points , it adds : “ They are not recommended for non-smokers and cannot be sold to people under 18 years old .”
An e-cigarette or vape allows people to inhale nicotine in a vapour rather than smoke .
Because they don ’ t burn tobacco and produce tar or carbon monoxide , these harmful by-products of smoking are avoided .
The products work by heating a liquid ( called an e-liquid ) that typically contains nicotine , propylene glycol , vegetable glycerine , and flavourings .
The NHS website does acknowledge vaping “ is not completely risk-free ” but poses a “ small fraction of the risk of smoking cigarettes ”.
It also acknowledges that while the long-term risks of vaping are not yet clear , many thousands of people in the UK have already stopped smoking with the help of an e-cigarette .
Another great advantage of using e-cigarettes according to the NHS website is that there ' s no evidence so far that vaping causes harm to other people around you .
This is in contrast to passive smoking ( secondhand smoke ), which is known to be very harmful to health .
If you are not a smoker and have never smoked , do not use vaping products – ever !
For more information and advice on using e-cigarettes , visit nhs . uk / live-well / quit-smoking / using-e-cigarettes-to-stop-smoking
You can also find a stop smoking service at nhs . uk / service-search / otherhealth-services / stop-smoking-support-services
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