Vapouround magazine Issue 04 | Page 18

NEWS Confused Messages About Vaping There is little wonder that there is a certain amount of confusion about e-cigarettes amongst the non-vaping community. Last year it was announced that e-cigarettes were to be banned from hospital grounds in Scotland as part of their ‘smoke free’ policy. It seems that the message that ‘vaping’ and ‘smoking’ are actually different terms had not yet filtered through. Some Scottish health boards used the ‘smoke free’ reason for wanting to ban vaping while others quoted concerns over safety. There was, as one might expect, a lot of anger from vapers at the news of the ban. Many interested parties pointed out that vaping had helped many people quit smoking and that this must surely be a good thing. The good news is that the relevant health authorities saw sense and decided that maybe a blanket ban on vaping was not such a good idea after all. The report from Public Health England which said vaping was 95% safer than smoking traditional cigarettes may certainly also have played a large part in 18 ISSUE 04 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE the decision to overturn the ban. Also according to research done by the NHS in Greater Glasgow and Clyde 18% of people in the area who had already given up smoking had done so with the aid of electronic cigarettes. Given that research it would be illogical to ban people from vaping when it was vaping that actually helped them quit smoking in the first place. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s director of public health Dr Emilia Crighton has said that “e-cigarettes do have their place in the fight against tobacco and are being used effectively to help people stop smoking altogether”. In the NHS GGC area at least, clear signage will be used to indicate areas where people are allowed to vape. In addition Health Scotland has also recommended the use of electronic cigarettes for those who want to give up smoking. The main NHS website even has a page titled “Using e-cigarettes to stop smoking” where it tells people that vaping may help them give up traditional cigarettes. The page says: “ Over recent years, e-cigarettes have become a very popular stop smoking aid in the UK. Evidence is still developing on how effective they are, but many people have found them helpful for quitting. “An electronic cigarette is a device that allows you to inhale nicotine without most of the harmful effects of smoking. “E-cigarettes do not produce tar and carbon monoxide – two of the main toxins in conventional cigarette smoke. The vapour from e-cigarettes has been found to contain some potentially harmful chemicals also found in cigarette smoke, but at much lower levels.” It goes on: “on current evidence, e-cigarettes carry a fraction of the risk of cigarettes and they can help you stop smoking. “If you want to use an e-cigarette to help you quit, you’ll give yourself the best chance if you get expert support from your local NHS stop smoking service.” So while there is still confusion in the population at large about vaping, more and more people are slowly becoming aware of its massive potential to help people quit smoking.