N
F
E
R
NEWS
H
THAI GOVERNMENT
CLAIMS THAT VAPING
CAUSES CANCER
Meanwhile a ban on home smoking comes into force
Words: Gordon Stribling
T
hailand’s Department of Disease Control has issued a press
release stating that the nicotine in e-cigarettes is a direct
cause of cancer.
The statement said that the high levels of nicotine in e-cigarettes
‘negatively affects the brain and nervous system’, weakens the
immune system and eventually ‘causes the cells in the body to grow
abnormally until fi nally becoming cancer.’
The statement read:
“Department of Disease Control therefore wishes to inform the public
about the dangers of nicotine addiction in electric cigarettes.
“Do not fall for or fall victim to a new type of tobacco product.
Especially electric cigarettes which are addictive products and
destroy the health of smokers and people around them.”
Two days after the press release was issued, Prime Minister Prayut
Chan-o-cha declared that he would not relax the rules around the use
of tobacco alternatives.
Gen Prayut noted that tobacco companies were lobbying for black-
market, non-combustible tobacco products to be legalised because
of their ‘substantial value.’
He said:
“Making decisions on this matter, the government cannot simply
consider the economic impact. E-cigarettes will also impact people’s
health and [create] an extra burden on health-care.”
Philip Morris International (PMI) has been pushing the government
to reverse the ban on e-cigarettes and heat-not-burn products that’s
been in effect since 2014.
Meanwhile, smokers who light up at home could face a prison
sentence after a new law equating smoking with domestic
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violence came into effect. While not outright illegal, smokers can
be prosecuted if it can be proven that health or family problems were
directly linked to second or third-hand smoke in the home.
At a tobacco and lung health conference earlier this year,
Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development chief
Lertpanya Booranabundit said:
“It can lead to two court trials: one in Criminal Court for ‘domestic
assault’ via smoke and the other at the Central Juvenile and
Family Court.
“This could lead to a court injunction to protect the health of family
members, with the smoker being sent to a rehabilitation centre to
kick the habit.”
According to a 2018 report by the World Health Organization, 36
percent of adults and 34 percent of children in Thailand are
exposed to second-hand smoke in the home.