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ECI Consumer Vaping Study and More! – Tobacco Harm Reduction News

November 29, 2021 Tobacco Harm Reduction News

Take the annual eCigIntelligence vaping consumer survey. Vaping research. Nicotine tax passes House. Updated Calls to Action. Women in Harm Reduction and more!

Scroll to the bottom of this post for a link to the audio/video versions of this post!

CALL TO ACTION UPDATE // National Nicotine Tax

The House has passed the Build Back Better bill, which includes the outrageously high and dangerous nicotine tax. Our last chance to have it removed is now in the Senate. Please contact your senators ASAP and urge them to oppose this tax!

If you don’t speak up, who will? Even if you don’t smoke or vape, it’s likely that someone you know does and they need your support. Take action TODAY (it only takes a few minutes!) Please TAKE ACTION NOW even if you already did it before!

 

TAKE ACTION: Stop an Excessive Federal Tax on Safer Nicotine Products

casaa cta flavor ban
CALL TO ACTION UPDATE // Portland, Maine Flavor Ban

A 3-0 vote by the committee has moved the proposal to consideration by the full council. The council likely will vote on it late next month or early next year. If it passes, it probably would go into effect in June. See link for more info and TAKE ACTION!

TAKE ACTION: Portland, Maine – Stop a Flavor Ban!

CALL TO ACTION UPDATE // Tempe, Arizona Flavor Ban

Tempe City Council is moving forward with a ban on flavored tobacco/nicotine products (including synthetic). Staff are being directed to research the proposal further, so it will likely come back up in early 2022. Stay alert!

 

TAKE ACTION: Tempe, AZ – Stop a Flavor Ban!

CALL TO ACTION UPDATE // Denver, Colorado Flavor Ban

The flavor ban ordinance has been added to the meeting on November 29th at 5:30 PM. It’s not clear if this will be added to the agenda or if public testimony will be accepted at this meeting. Check out the link for more info!

TAKE ACTION: Denver, CO Stop a Flavor Ban!

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE // Philadelphia, PA Flavor Ban

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit upheld U.S. District Court Judge Gene E.K. Pratter’s order that prevented the city from enacting the flavored tobacco ban.

READ MORE: Philadelphia’s Flavored Tobacco Ban Loses In Court Again

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE // Addiction Treatment Smoking/Vaping Ban Ends

A horribly misguided smoking and vaping ban in Philadelphia’s city-funded drug treatment programs, including outdoor spaces, has finally been lifted.

“Dr. Casey Bohrman, a researcher at West Chester University, in partnership with the organization Angels in Motion, provided both qualitative and quantitative evidence that the smoking ban in Philadelphia was deterring people from seeking inpatient treatment. Moreover, her research found that patients left against medical advice because of the ban, or were kicked out for smoking….Bowen knew that there was a ban, and that it was having harmful impacts. Most tragically, people have died of overdose after refusing to go into treatment because they could not smoke cigarettes there.”

READ MORE: Philly’s Addiction-Treatment Smoking Ban Ends, Leaving Bitter Taste

RESEARCH // eCigIntelligence Consumer Survey

It’s that time of year again! CASAA works cooperatively with eCigIntelligence to develop consumer survey questions that aid us in our advocacy efforts and help take the pulse of the vaping community. Please click the link to take the survey!

TAKE THE SURVEY: USA Vape Consumer Survey 2021

RESEARCH // Vaping “Gateway” Not Found

In a scenario in which e-cigarettes would have never been made available, “what we see is that youth smoking rates would not have been declining as quickly” as they have with the introduction of e-cigarettes, Natasha Sokol, assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior and research scientist at The Miriam Hospital Center for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine said. “I don’t think it’s worth the concern over youth smoking initiation potentially mitigating the public health benefits of e-cigarettes as a cessation aid,” she added. This concern is “overblown.”

 

READ MORE: Study challenges concern of e-cigarette use in high school students

RESEARCH // No Evidence Non-Tobacco Flavors Lead to Youth Smoking

A systematic review–published by UK smoking and addiction experts in the journal Addiction–found “no evidence that using flavored e-liquids attracted young people to go on to take up tobacco smoking.”

“We found that flavored e-liquids are an important aspect of vaping that young people enjoy. This suggests that flavored products may encourage young people to switch away from harmful tobacco smoking towards less harmful vaping. Flavors may be an important motivator for e-cigarette uptake — but we found no evidence that using flavored e-liquids attracted young people to go on to take up tobacco smoking.”

READ MORE: Role of flavored e-cigarettes on cigarette smoking uptake, cessation unclear in youth

RESEARCH // Flavor Bans Are Bad for Public Health

Study findings “raise the possibility that banning some flavoured vaping products may dissuade some adult smokers from vaping, with the possibility that they would return to smoking cigarettes, which are clearly much more harmful than vaping…”

READ MORE: Bans on flavored e-cigarettes could see some vapers return to smoking cigarettes

RESEARCH // Tobacco 21 Fail

A study of the Tobacco 21 law in Minnesota, which promised “to reduce the likelihood that a high school student will be able to legally purchase tobacco products for other students,” inexplicably finds reduced tobacco use in 8th and 9th grades but not in the older students. Contrary to the headline, this is actually a notable failure, because the 11th and 12th grade students were already more likely to use tobacco and make the straw purchases for younger students. Meanwhile, other legal adults who smoke are discouraged by the law from purchasing low risk alternatives to smoking until they turn 21 years old.

READ MORE: Other View: Minnesota research shows Tobacco 21 is working

RESEARCH // Nicotine vs. Smoking

Typical of anti-vaping research, this study focuses on the possible effects of nicotine alone, but authors ignore the fact that cigarettes also contain nicotine.  Additionally, cigarette smoke contains carbon monoxide, deadly toxins and high levels of carcinogens that are not found in harm-reducing vapor products. Ignoring or downplaying the reduced and eliminated exposures in vapor products does a grave disservice to overall public health.

READ MORE: Nicotine weakens immune system, USA researchers find

RESEARCH // Say It Again: “Correlation Does NOT Equal Causation”

Yet another misleading cross-sectional study to join those similarly misleading heart attack and stroke studies. These types of studies only result in the media  reporting the correlation as though it proves causation. Did you break a bone in 2008 and then take a few puffs from a vapor product in 2018? That’s ridiculously considered a “correlation” in this study, which was then used to estimate risk and advise doctors to tell their patients not to vape because it increases bone fragility.

READ MORE: E-cigarette use may be detrimental to bone health in adults

ADVOCACY // Women and Tobacco Harm Reduction

This structural sexism is why a group of women who work in THR as practitioners, researchers, writers and advocates are forming the coalition Women in Tobacco Harm Reduction. We urge greater prioritization and distribution of resources toward research on women and tobacco harm reduction, and elevating the needs and voices of women, especially in low-and middle-income countries. We support gender equality in THR-related policy, advocacy, journalism and research. We will not be silent.”
~ Helen Redmond

READ MORE: Women’s Voices Among Those Absent at the Global Tobacco Control COP

PUBLIC HEALTH // Exposing Anti-Vaping Lies

Steve Pociask, president and CEO of the American Consumer Institute, calls out the misinformation being spread by Tobacco Control about vaping:

“Kristen Goodrich, Portland’s Tobacco Prevention Coordinator, asserted that 85% of young people [vape nicotine] and that ‘flavor bans have been proven to be effective public health strategy.’ Ms. Goodrich’s facts are wrong.” 

“According to a 2018 study, adults in the U.S. who have completely switched from smoking cigarettes to using e-cigarettes are increasingly likely to have initiated e-cigarette use with non-tobacco flavors. “Restricting access to…e-cigarette flavors may discourage smokers from attempting to switch to e-cigarettes,” the authors conclude.

In making its decision on whether to move forward with the flavors ban, the City Council should heed this evidence, which was ignored during the Safety Committee’s deliberations. Lives are at stake.”

READ MORE: Push to ban flavored tobacco products undermines public health

PUBLIC HEALTH // Exposing Anti-Vaping Lies

Dr. Michael Siegel calls out CTFK’s Matt Myers on his “nonsense” and “lies.” 

“Matt, you’re just talking nonsense.” 

“I’m not going to let you get out here and lie to people.”

“Matt, you’re talking like Big Tobacco.” 

“You’re really misleading people by quoting all these groups. This is what Big Tobacco used to say, that “there’s no proof.” There are 3 million people out there [who quit] and that’s proof.”

WATCH: The Doctors: Can E-Cigarettes Help People to Quit Smoking?

IN THE NEWS // Synthetic Nicotine

Synthetic nicotine has been on the radar of state-level and federal lawmakers in the past, but never with the mainstream traction it’s received in the past few weeks. Despite decreasing youth vaping rates, it has quickly morphed into the next target for policymakers….

Synthetic nicotine has stepped center-stage because science and tobacco policy—policy that should surely be dedicated to helping smokers switch successfully—have, for so long, been out of step.

https://twitter.com/SonjaMarx9/status/1463246265513394184

READ MORE: Elizabeth Warren, CBS, North Carolina Ramp Up Focus on Synthetic Nicotine

IN THE NEWS // Ocean City: Stunning Arrest Started From Vaping

Trial begins for 19-year-old Taizier Griffin, whose June 6, 2021, encounter with the Ocean City Police Department was one of two Boardwalk incidents that went viral after video of the arrests was widely shared on social media.

READ MORE: In Ocean City vaping arrest, trial begins with contradicting testimony

IN THE NEWS // Canadian School “Strip Searches” Children Suspected of Vaping

Anti-vaping hysteria has reached a new low when children are stripped of their clothing (apparently without parents present) in an attempt to catch them with vaping “paraphernalia.”

READ MORE: ‘That is not acceptable’: Montreal mom furious son told to drop his pants at school during search for vaping products

TAKE ACTION // CASAA State Facebook Groups

Have you joined your CASAA State Facebook group yet? Check it out now! Click the link below, click on your state on the map, then click the “Join Now” button to go to your state’s group page. It’s as easy as that to stay updated on local happenings, meet local advocates and never miss a Call to Action in your state!

Don’t forget to also follow our official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CASAAmedia

FIND YOUR GROUP: CASAA State Locator

CASAA MEDIA // Podcast

Catch up on past tobacco harm reduction news with Alex and Logan on the CASAA podcasts on SoundCloud every Monday and now live on YouTube and Facebook every Saturday at 3:30 PM.

SoundCloud:

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