Daily Archives: May 3, 2022

Past month NICOTINE VAPING rose dramatically over 3 years.

Among college students, rates of nicotine vaping reported in the past 30 days have increased from 6% in 2017 to 16% in 2018 and 22% in 2019. Rates among non-college peers have increased from 8% in 2017 to 13% in 2018 and 18% in 2019.

Past month CANNABIS VAPING increased sharply among non-college young adults in 2019.

Among college students, rates of cannabis vaping reported in the past 30 days have increased from 5% in 2017 to 11% in 2018 and 14% in 2019. Rates among non-college peers remained steady at 8% in 2017 and 2018 and increased to 17% in 2019.

Past year CANNABIS USE remained at historic highs.

Rates of any cannabis use reported over the past year have steadily increased from 37% in 2014 to 43% in 2019 in non-college young adults. Rates among college students have increased from 34% in 2014 to 43% in 2019, accounting for a 9% five-year increase.

Daily CANNABIS USE was more common among non-college young adults in 2019

Daily use of cannabisdefined as use on 20 or more occasions in the past 30 dayswas nearly 3x as high among young adults not attending college compared to peers in college. In 2019, 6% of college students and 15% of non-college peers used cannabis daily.

Note: Figures have been rounded to the nearest whole number.

This publication is available for your use and may be reproduced in its entirety without permission from NIDA. Citation of the source is appreciated, using the following language: Source:National Institute on Drug Abuse; National Institutes of Health; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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Vaping & Cannabis Trends Among Young Adults (19-22 ...

A bill to ban the sale of flavored vaping products has passed both chambers of the Legislature and now moves to Gov. David Ige for his signature. HB1570 HD1 SD2 aims to minimize access to harmful tobacco products that target kids.

It was introduced by Windward Oahu Rep. Scot Z. Matayoshi.

Flavored vaping products have targeted kids for years, addicting a generation to nicotine right under our noses, Matayoshi said on Tuesday in a press release. The long-term health consequences will be felt for years to come, but this bill is a start to minimizing these impacts.

According to the 2019 Hawaii Youth Risk Behavior Survey, a significant 31% of middle schoolers have tried electronic smoking devices and an even greater number of public high school students at 48%.

Local flavors such as orange soda and Maui mango are known to entice youth to seek out and use these harmful products, the representative said.

No one disputes that nicotine is incredibly addicting and disrupts student attention and learning, Matayoshi said. An adults desire to vape with flavors does not override the harm being done to a generation of kids, many of whom will be addicted for the rest of their lives. If an adult wants to use vaping to quit smoking, they can still do so with a flavorless or tobacco-flavored vaping product.

The bill bans retailers from selling, offering for sale, and possessing with the intent to sell or offer for sale any flavored tobacco products other than a tobacco flavor. It also bans the mislabeling of nicotine products as nicotine-free. Violations will come with fines no less than $500 and no more than $2,000.

The House agreed to the Senate amendments in the bill this week avoiding the need for a conference committee hearing. The bill does create an exception for Premarket Tobacco Product Applications, inserted by the Senate.

Matayoshi said he is committed to trying to remove this exception next session.

Its not a perfect bill, but it is certainly a step in the right direction and better than the status quo of no flavored vaping regulation, he said. It will take nearly all flavored tobacco products off the market now, and that is an opportunity we cannot pass up.

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Bill Banning Flavored Vaping Sales Heads to Governor's Desk | Big Island Now - Big Island Now

More people are turning to vaping to stop their smoking habits.

The NHS does not offer vapes on prescription, they are sold in specialist vape shops, some pharmacies and other retailers.

Mostly common among young adults, many believe vaping is less harmful than smoking, they are cheaper than traditional cigarettes in the long run and youths find the lack of smoke and strong smell appealing.

Read more:Is it time that smoking outside pubs and cafes be banned?

A vape or e-cigarette is a device that allows you to inhale nicotine in a vapour rather than smoke. It does not burn tobacco and does not produce tar or carbon monoxide, two of the most damaging elements in tobacco smoke.

Vaping works by heating a liquid that typically contains nicotine, propylene glycol and/or vegetable glycerine, and flavourings.

There are a variety of models and the thing they all share in common is they have to be charged.

Cigalikes look closely like tobacco cigarettes and can be disposable or rechargeable. Vape pens are shaped like a pen or small tube, with a tank to store e-liquid and replaceable coils.

Pod systems are compact rechargeable devices, often in the shape of a USB stick or a pebble. The last model there is mods, they come in different shapes and sizes, but are the largest vape devices. They have a refillable tank and longer lasting rechargeable batteries.

A rechargeable e-cigarette with a refillable tank delivers nicotine more effectively and quickly than a disposable model and is likely to give you a better chance of quitting smoking.

Vapes arent completely risk free, but according to the NHS they carry a small fraction of the risk of cigarettes. They do not produce tar or carbon monoxide, two of the most harmful elements in tobacco smoke.

The liquid and vapour contain some potentially harmful chemicals found in cigarette smoke, but at much lower levels. Vaping can be used as a way to quit cigarettes by getting nicotine with fewer of the toxins that come from burning tobacco.

The NHS says on its website: "E-cigarettes are far less harmful than cigarettes and can help you quit smoking for good. Many thousands of people in the UK have already stopped smoking with the help of an e-cigarette.

"A major UK clinical trial published in 2019 found that, when combined with expert face-to-face support, people who used e-cigarettes to quit smoking were twice as likely to succeed as people who used other nicotine replacement products, such as patches or gum." However the NHS also warns: "You will not get the full benefit from vaping unless you stop smoking cigarettes completely. "

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NHS vaping advice and guidelines as e-cigarettes are recommended as a way to stop smoking - My London

SILVER SPRING, Md. --News Direct-- Discovery Education

SILVER SPRING, Md., May 2, 2022 /3BL Media/ To help students learn to make healthy decisions for themselves and their community, Be Vape Free presents the new Be Vape Free Heroes Virtual Field Trip, premiering May 3rd at 1 PM ET. Be Vape Free is a nationwide initiative providing standards-aligned, no-cost, e-cigarette prevention resources for educators teaching grades 5-12 created in collaboration with the CVS Health Foundation, CATCH Global Foundation, and Discovery Education.

The Be Vape Free Heroes Virtual Field Trip introduces students to anti-vaping peers and leaders to learn about the dangers of vaping. Students will find out how social media and other factors can influence their decision-making about vaping, while gaining practical strategies to overcome peer pressure and tools to help those who are addicted find the courage and support to quit. Educators can use this Virtual Field Trip and accompanying classroom content and educator resources to inspire a new generation of health heroes by equipping students with tools they can use to help take a stand against vaping in their community. Learn more and register for the no-cost event virtual here.

The new Be Vape Free Heroes Virtual Field Trip is another powerful resource created through this collaboration that, together with the core CATCH My Breath lessons, equips students with the knowledge and skills to make healthy choices, said Marcella Bianco, National Program Director for CATCH My Breath at CATCH Global Foundation.

Be Vape Free ensures that everyonestudents, parents, educators, and other community membershas access to no-cost, preventative resources that educate and empower young people to live healthier lives. With the support of teachers and community members, the Be Vape Free initiative is on a mission to foster the first vape-free generation. The Be Vape Free resources are available at BeVapeFree.com and through Discovery Educations K-12 platform.

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With knowledge and know-how, students can accomplish anything, including inspiring their peers to live healthy, vape free lives, said Beth Meyer, Vice President of Social Impact at Discovery Education. In collaboration with the CVS Health Foundation and CATCH Global Foundation, we are helping educators support students as they design healthier futures.

For more information about Discovery Educations digital resources and professional learning services, visit http://www.discoveryeducation.com and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through Twitter and LinkedIn.

###

CATCH Global FoundationCATCH Global Foundation is a 501(c)3 public charity founded in 2014. Our mission is to empower school communities to cultivate Whole Child wellness as a lever for student success and social equity. The Foundation links underserved schools and communities to the resources necessary to create and sustain healthy change for future generations. Learn more at http://www.catch.org

CVS Health FoundationThe CVS Health Foundation is a private charitable organization created by CVS Health that works to build healthier communities, enabling people of all ages to lead healthy, productive lives. The Foundation provides strategic investments to nonprofit partners throughout the U.S. who help increase community-based access to health care for underserved populations, create innovative approaches to chronic disease management and provide tobacco cessation and youth prevention programming. To learn more about the CVS Health Foundation and its giving, visit http://www.cvshealth.com/social-responsibility.

About Discovery EducationDiscovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms. Through its award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia resources, and the largest professional learning network of its kind, Discovery Education is transforming teaching and learning, creating immersive STEM experiences, and improving academic achievement around the globe. Discovery Education currently serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 100 countries and territories. Inspired by the global media company Discovery, Inc., Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and like-minded organizations to empower teachers with customized solutions that support the success of all learners. Explore the future of education at DiscoveryEducation.com.

ContactsBrooks BallardCATCH Global FoundationEmail: brooks@catch.org

Eva PereiraCVS HealthEmail: PereiraE1@cvshealth.com

Grace MaliskaDiscovery EducationEmail: gmaliska@dicoveryed.com

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Discovery Education on 3blmedia.com

View source version on newsdirect.com: https://newsdirect.com/news/new-virtual-field-trip-supported-by-the-cvs-health-foundation-discovery-education-and-catch-global-foundation-empowers-anti-vaping-heroes-181963203

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New Virtual Field Trip Supported by the CVS Health Foundation, Discovery Education, and CATCH Global Foundation Empowers Anti-Vaping Heroes - Yahoo...

BMJ Open. 2022 May 2;12(5):e058324. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-058324.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: We sought to quantify the impact of vaping introduction on cigarette smoking across settings with varied regulatory approaches to vaping.

DESIGN: Interrupted time series analysis, adjusted for cigarette tax levels.

SETTING: Four Canadian provinces, UK and Australia.

PARTICIPANTS: Entire population of smokers in each country.

INTERVENTIONS: The year that vaping was widely introduced in each country.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome is cigarette consumption per adult, and the secondary outcome is smoking prevalence among young adults.

RESULTS: Based on allowable nicotine levels, restrictions on e-cigarette advertising, sales and access, and taxation, the least to most restrictive jurisdictions were, in order, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia (all in Canada), UK and Australia. In most, but not all, settings where higher nicotine content was permitted in vaping products (66 mg/mL), vaping introduction led to a reduction in cigarette consumption per capita (Ontario: p=0.037, Quebec: p=0.007) or in smoking prevalence among young adults (Alberta men, p=0.027; Quebec men, p=0.008; Quebec women, p=0.008). In the UK, where the maximum permitted nicotine content in vaping products was 20 mg/mL, vaping introduction slowed the declining trend in cigarette smoking among men aged 16-24 years (p=0.031) and 25-34 years (p=0.002) but not in cigarette consumption per adult. In Australia, where nicotine was not permitted in e-cigarettes, e-cigarette introduction slowed the declining trend in cigarette consumption per capita and in smoking prevalence among men aged 18-24 years (cigarette consumption: p=0.015, prevalence: p=0.044).

CONCLUSION: In environments that enable substitution of cigarettes with e-cigarettes, e-cigarette introduction reduces overall cigarette consumption. Thus, to reduce cigarette smoking, policies that encourage adults to substitute cigarette smoking with vaping should be considered.

PMID:35501081 | DOI:10.1136/bmjopen-2021-058324

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Impact of vaping introduction on cigarette smoking in six jurisdictions with varied regulatory approaches to vaping: an interrupted time series...

Tuesday, 3 May 2022, 12:31 pmPress Release: Universities New Zealand - Te Pokai Tara

Regulatory loopholes are contributing to increases in thenumber of young New Zealanders exposed to nicotine throughvaping, warns the winner of the 2022 Critic and Conscienceof Society Award.

Janet Hoek is aProfessor of Public Health at the University of Otago,Wellington, and co-director of the universitys ASPIRE2025 Research Centre, which conducts research to support theGovernments smokefree 2025 goal.

She is the latestwinner of a $50,000 grant from philanthropic trust The GamaFoundation in recognition of fulfilling her role under theEducation and Training Act 2020, which requires universityacademics to act as the critic and conscience ofsociety.

The award, administered by Universities NewZealand Te Pkai Tara, is given each year to anacademic who, in the opinion of a panel of three independentjudges, has done more in the past two calendar years thanany other applicant to provide the public with independentexpert commentary on an issue or issues affecting theAotearoa New Zealand community or futuregenerations.

Previous winners have been ProfessorAlexander Gillespie and Associate Professor Siouxsie Wiles(2021), Professor Michael Baker and Associate ProfessorAnita Gibbs (2020), Professor Andrew Geddis (2019),Professor Ann Brower (2018) and Dr Mike Joy(2017).

For more than 20 years, Professor Hoek hasresearched how policy measures could more effectively reducethe appeal, availability and accessibility of tobaccoproducts.

She has shared her findings in more than 250conference presentations and more than 200 peer-reviewedacademic articles, as well as in blogs and through extensivemedia activity.

She also works with community andadvocacy groups and NGOs, and has led several studies thatcontributed to New Zealands Smokefree Action Planreleased in 2021.

Submissions based on ProfessorHoeks findings have informed national and internationaltobacco legislation, including New Zealands SmokefreeEnvironments and Regulated Products Amendment Act 2020(SERPA), for which she documented aggressive vapeproduct marketing that targeted young people.

Since2020, Professor Hoek has identified loopholes that leaveyoung people vulnerable to continued vape productmarketing.

The most recent New Zealand Health Surveyshows that vaping at least monthly among young people aged15 to 17 more than tripled between 2018/19 and 2020/21,rising from 3.5% to 12.3%, and daily use increased from 1.7%to 5.8%.

The same patterns are evident among thoseaged 18 to 24, with monthly use rising from 8.8% to 21.1%and daily use from 4.5% to 15.3%. The 2021 ASH Year 10survey findings show daily vaping among those aged 14 to 15more than tripled in two years, from 3.1% in 2019 to 9.6% in2021.

These large increases show vaping issupplementing, not displacing, smoking and many more youngpeople have become dependent on nicotine, says ProfessorHoek.

She says more regulation is needed to combatsocial media marketing that not only targets young peoplebut provides incentives for them to create and share contentand refer friends for promotional offers.

We need abetter balance between supporting people who smoke to switchto a less harmful alternative while also protecting youngpeople from products that do not support theirwellbeing.

Professor Hoek also highlights how smallconvenience stores are sub-dividing their premises to createspecialist vape retail outlets. This tactic circumventsSERPA, which imposed flavour restrictions on the stores andallowed them to sell only tobacco, menthol and mintflavoured e-liquids.

Specialist vape stores maysell all flavours. By reinventing themselves as bothconvenience stores and specialist vape outlets, dairies areensuring diverse, youth-oriented flavours such asbubble-gum, cookies & cream anddragons milk remain in the heart of familyneighbourhoods, says Professor Hoek.

She would liketo see vaping products removed from small convenience storesso they are sold only by retailers that can offer cessationadvice and are not frequented by young people in the waydairies are.

Commenting on its selection of ProfessorHoek as winner of the 2022 Critic and Conscience of SocietyAward, The Gama Foundations Grant Nelson praised hersteadfast long-term commitment to gathering thebest-possible evidence around tobacco products and thenusing it to inform public and policymaker understanding of amajor public health issue.

Professor Hoek welcomed theaward, saying: Its an enormous honour to receive thisaward, which recognises a core role academics are privilegedto have but that can be challenging to perform. I see theaward as recognition of the ASPIRE 2025 Research Centreswork, which has made major contributions to tobacco controlpolicy in Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond. We are verygrateful for this generous grant, which will help usstrengthen our community connections and ensure our researchcontinues to have real-world implications.

Thismedia release is also available on the Universities NewZealand website for sharing digitally: https://www.universitiesnz.ac.nz/latest-news-and-publications/critic-and-conscience-society-award-winner-highlights-vaping-threat

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Critic And Conscience Of Society Award Winner Highlights Vaping Threat To Health Of Young New Zealanders | Scoop News - Scoop

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is moving fast to close off what seems to be the last remaining legal option for vaping companies that want to provide the e-liquid flavors that former smokers overwhelmingly prefer. Exercising regulatory authority that Congress recently gave it, the FDA has set a May 14 deadline for seeking "premarket" approval of vaping products that deliver nicotine derived from sources other than tobacco. Companies that fail to submit applications by then, the agency warns, "will be subject to FDA enforcement."

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2022, which President Joe Biden signed into law on March 15, included a provision that expanded the FDA's authority over "tobacco products" to include products that do not contain tobacco or tobacco derivatives. Congress achieved that counterintuitive result by amending the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, the 2009 law that first authorized the FDA to regulate tobacco.

The FDA says that amendment, which took effect on April 14, "makes clear that FDA can regulate tobacco products containing nicotine from any source." The agency describes the change as a response to manufacturers "who saw a loophole in the current law" and used it to "skirt federal regulation" so they could sell products "packed with nicotine and sold in a myriad of kid-appealing flavors." According to the FDA, that situation was intolerable, because the agency "has made it one of our top priorities to reduce youth use of these products." That gloss is misleading for several reasons.

First, the Tobacco Control Act defined "tobacco product" as "any product madeor derived from tobacco that is intended for human consumption," including "any component, part, or accessory of a tobacco product." Although the law did not mention vaping or e-cigarettes, the FDA successfully argued that products delivering nicotine derived from tobacco were covered by that definition. The amendment did not clarify the definition; it expanded the definition in a way that rendered the term tobacco product a misnomer.

Second, the insinuation that vaping companies were doing something shady by "skirt[ing] federal regulation" is based on the idea that it was clearly illegitimate to frustrate the FDA's goals, regardless of whether those goals were consistent with the agency's statutory authority. Companies that claimed an exemption from FDA regulation based on the legal definition of "tobacco product" were not skirting the law; they were following the law as Congress wrote it.

Third, the Tobacco Control Act described "the use of tobacco products by the Nation's children" as "a pediatric disease" with potentially lethal consequences, since "a consensus exists within the scientific and medical communities that tobacco products are inherently dangerous and cause cancer, heart disease, and other serious adverse health effects." That is not true of vaping products, which are far less hazardous than cigarettes and offer a harm-reducing alternative that promises to drive down tobacco-related morbidity and mortality, as even the FDA concedes.

Fourth, the "kid-appealing flavors" that the FDA sees as a threat to the nation's youth are also highly popular among adults. A 2019 analysis of data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study found that three quarters of past-month adult vapers, 93 percent of whom were current or former smokers, preferred flavors other than tobacco. Furthermore, "former smokers who [had] completely switched to an e-cigarette" were especially likely to have "transitioned from a tobacco flavored product to a non-tobacco flavored product."

Given this pattern of preferences, it is reasonable to ask what impact restricting flavors can be expected to have on smokers who have switched to vaping or might be interested in doing so. If limiting flavor variety makes vaping less appealing as an alternative source of nicotine, it could drive some people back to smoking and deter others from switching. The upshot would be more smoking-related deaths than would otherwise occur.

The same analysis applies to teenagers, some of whom smoke or vape even though they are not legally allowed to do so. The fact that the downward trend in adolescent smoking accelerated as vaping became more popular suggests that the latter habit is displacing the former among teenagers, which under any rational analysis ought to count as a public health victory. To the extent that flavor restrictions make vaping less appealing to teenagers (which is precisely what the FDA aims to do), some of them may choose to smoke instead. Assuming they stick with that habit into adulthood, the result will be more, rather than fewer, premature deaths.

The FDAwhich so far has approved just three brands of vaping products, all in tobacco flavorsnevertheless seems determined to restrict consumer choice in a way that is likely to undermine public health. The agency discounts the importance of flavor variety to adult vapers, and it refuses even to consider the possibility that many teenagers who vape would otherwise be smoking. When it comes to adolescents, its only priority is discouraging vaping, even if the result is more smoking.

The FDA's bias against flavor variety is inconsistent with the mission it was given under the Tobacco Control Act. That law requires the FDA to determine whether approval of a product is "appropriate for the protection of the public health," taking into account "the risks and benefits to the population as a whole, including users and nonusers of the tobacco product." The FDA is supposed to consider "the increased or decreased likelihood that existing users of tobacco products will stop using such products" as well as "the increased or decreased likelihood that those who do not use tobacco products will start using such products."

One of the companies that took advantage of the "loophole" decried by the FDA is Puff Bar, which makes disposable e-cigarettes in a variety of flavors. In July 2020, the FDA ordered Puff Bar to "remove their flavored disposable e-cigarettes and youth-appealing e-liquid products from the market because they do not have the required premarket authorization." Puff Bar responded by reformulating its products, which now contain synthetic nicotine. Other companies, such as the e-liquid manufacturer Vapor Salon, went the same route. Last August, Vapor Salon explained that "the main purpose of this is to be outside of the FDA's regulations."

The FDA sees those decisions as patently outrageous. But when regulators impose requirements so burdensome and expensive that almost no business can hope to comply with them, based on nebulous standards they apply in unpredictable and seemingly arbitrary ways, it is hardly surprising that manufacturers would look for a way out.

Puff Bar's website still claims the company's products "are notand never werebanned." But the FDA says every vaping product sold in the United States, except for the brands it has approved (Vuse Solo,two Logic devices, and NJOY Ace), is "marketed unlawfully" and "subject to enforcement action at the FDA's discretion." Even before Congress amended the Tobacco Control Act, Puff Bar's original products were "marketed unlawfully," which is another way of saying they were banned. Now that Congress has authorized the FDA to regulate nicotine that is not derived from tobacco, even the reformulated Puff Bar products fall into that "unlawful" category. I have asked Puff Bar what it plans to do in response to that change, and I will update this post if I get a response.

As the FDA sees it, the entire vaping industry (except for three brands) exists only at its sufferance. The reality, however, is that the FDA does not have the resources to go after all those "unlawful" manufacturers. Even if it did, that would not stop black-market dealers from taking their place, which would hardly be an improvement for consumers or for regulators trying to protect them. The FDA's capricious exercise of its authority is apt to make a mockery of the control it is trying to assert.

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The FDA Uses Its New Authority To Close Off the Last Remaining Legal Option for Vapers Who Like Flavor Variety - Reason