Fifteen tobacco control experts speak out in favor of vaping as harm reduction, FDA bans 55,000 vape products. John Hopkins professor on nicotine. Mayo Clinic study on vaping and COVID-19. Study finds vaping doesn’t damage lung cilia. Poll finds adult vaping is down and smoking is up. Anti-vaping groups pressure FDA to ignore law and more!
Scroll to the bottom of this post for a link to the audio/video versions of this post!
TOBACCO HARM REDUCTION // Tobacco Control Experts
In an unprecedented report published in the American Journal of Public Health, 15 esteemed scientists, doctors, and public health professionals — all of whom are former presidents of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) — are drawing attention to the need for balance in the debate and resulting policies around vaping and other safer nicotine products to include the needs of more than just children.
Alex Clark, CASAA’s CEO, echoed the call for balance:
The experiences of people who smoke and people who are switching to safer nicotine products such as vaping, as well as people who currently smoke, are underweighted in research and policy discussions about tobacco regulations. As a consequence, policies designed almost solely to prevent young people from using tobacco are not serving a majority of people who use nicotine. Low-risk alternatives to smoking have been available for more than a century, but moralizing and zealotry about using nicotine and other drugs are keeping people in the dark where they are suffering avoidable early deaths.”
READ MORE: Tobacco Control Experts Promote Vaping
IN THE NEWS // FDA Takes Action
FDA rejects another 55,000 PMTAs from 3 small companies, this time saying the companies failed to provide studies that prove the benefits of adults switching to vaping overcomes the alleged “risk posed to youth” from flavors. However, those “risks” have never been scientifically proven and the FDA seems to ignore the benefits of vaping replacing youth smoking. Read the full story as written by CASAA director Jim McDonald for Vaping360.
By creating pointless but insurmountable paperwork burdens, FDA bans 55,000 vaping products. These are all much safer alternatives to cigarettes, which retain untroubled access to the US market. https://t.co/6qmJWXQNyd
— Clive Bates (@Clive_Bates) August 26, 2021
READ MORE: FDA Signals It Won’t Authorize Flavored E-Liquid PMTAs
IN THE NEWS // Media Misinformation
Article wonders why youth with ADHD have greater risk of smoking/nicotine use, tells readers youth start to smoke “for fun” or peer pressure and should, essentially, be told to “just say no.” We suggest watching the video at the end of the article (that the reporter apparently didn’t actually watch) which more correctly discusses that nicotine for those with ADHD is most likely “self-medicating.”
Dude, I love cigarettes. I smoke probably once a month, but damn, I love them.
The nicotine settles my ADHD and I get super focused.
— Sam Leslie (@SamtLeslie) August 24, 2021
TOBACCO HARM REDUCTION // Nicotine and Harm Reduction
Alex Norcia from Filter magazine interviews Dr. Matthew Johnson, a professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins, about why nicotine “has long been relegated to the outskirts of harm reduction.”
I was interviewed on #tobaccoharmreduction, nicotine reduction policy considered by FDA, #ecigs & need for smart regulation to leverage as cig substitutes. My opinions differ from many fellow nicotine scientists. Thanks to reporter @Alex_Norcia & @ethannadelmann for shout out! https://t.co/Ocy11jV4lm
— Matthew W. Johnson (@Drug_Researcher) August 21, 2021
READ MORE: Will the Drug Liberation Movement Make Room for Nicotine?
CASAA IN ACTION // New Testimonial Database
CASAA is honored to be part of the international effort to amplify the voices of safer-nicotine consumers. With the goal of creating the world’s largest collection of successful vape stories, two leading consumer advocacy groups have launched the RightToVape.org site.
https://twitter.com/LivePippas/status/1427376048543395841
READ MORE: Misinformation Threatens Efforts to Reduce Tobacco Harm
CASAA IN ACTION // The Truth About Vaping
If you missed the live show on Saturday, where CASAA president Danielle Jones premiered and discussed the brilliant 4th episode of her “The Truth About Vaping” series, catch the replay now and then go to her channel to SHARE IT EVERYWHERE!
CASAA IN ACTION // Smoke-free Tobacco
CASAA CEO Alex Clark is quoted in an article in CStore Decisions magazine regarding states considering flavor bans on all low risk tobacco products.
We’ve already seen how harmful flavor bans are for people who vape by pressuring them back to smoking or buying products from informal sources. There’s no reason to expect a different result from banning other flavored smoke-free options like snus, nicotine pouches and moist snuff.”
READ MORE: Smokeless Stands Firm
RESEARCH // COVID-19
Contrary to the unsubstantiated claims made by anti-vaping public health groups, a study of nearly 70,000 people by the Mayo Clinic has found that vaping does NOT appear to increase susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Mayo Clinic did a study of 70,000 patients, no correlation between Covid and Vaping,
.https://t.co/osmXCYdLqq— BDOS, Chapter at Large (@LittleW99300122) August 20, 2021
READ MORE: Electronic Cigarette Use Is Not Associated with COVID-19 Diagnosis
RESEARCH // No Damage to Lung Cilia
Study finds combustion-free vaping and heat-not-burn products “are unlikely to have adverse effects on [lung cilia] function, and add to the evidence that these products do not appear to pose a significant respiratory health hazard.”
After switching from smoking to #vaping, lungs quickly recover their ability to clear mucus. The cilia (hair cells) recover leading to better lung health.@RiccardoPolosa @tsanz_thoracic @AsthmaAustralia https://t.co/Yv9lThysOy
— Colin Mendelsohn (@ColinMendelsohn) August 23, 2021
READ MORE: Impact of exclusive e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products use on muco-ciliary clearance
RESEARCH // Exposing Anti-vaping Bias
Authors of this study acknowledge that the claim made by advocates is “safer” for people who smoke (not “100% safe,”) yet then go on to focus on results showing the products are “not 100% safe” for non-smokers. Unbiased researchers would also wonder if switching to vaping reduces the cellular oxidative stress for people who smoke, as they did in this January 2020 study.
Vaping offers smokers a lower risk alternative.
"we observed no difference in inflammatory &
oxidative stress biomarkers between exclusive e-cigarette users & nonusers (no cigarettes or vaping), and levels were lower in exclusive e-cigarette users relative to exclusive smokers." https://t.co/ltWKsXf5xj— INNCOorg (@INNCOorg) January 11, 2021
READ MORE: A Single Vaping Session Can Increase Cellular Oxidative Stress in Non-Smokers
HEADS UP! // Springdale, Arkansas
Without any scientific evidence to justify it, city is considering banning vaping and use of smoke-free tobacco (will they do mouth checks??) outdoors in parks and on trails, with fine up to $500!
No smoking? Springdale considers smoking ban in parks https://t.co/vhORgl83gd
— NWA Democrat-Gazette (@nwademgaz) August 17, 2021
READ MORE: No smoking? Springdale considers smoking ban in parks
PUBLIC HEALTH // War on Vaping Fail
A U.S. Gallup poll finds a disturbing trend for public health, yet reports it as mainly good news. CASAA compared statistics from 2019 that were not reported in the article and found that past week vaping by young adults is down from 19% in 2019 to 17% in 2020, with the smoking rate seeing no change at 14%. The even worse news not mentioned in the article is that vaping declined and smoking rose for older adults ages 30-64 years old.
Another demonstration that vaping does not lead to smoking: the latest Gallup poll on smoking in the USA. The number of smokers is at it’s lowest point ever. So if vaping did lead to smoking we would see an increase in teen smoking which is NOT the case. https://t.co/npzS0Fprpm
— Allison (@alli_vapes) August 13, 2021
READ MORE: Smoking and Vaping Remain Steady and Low in U.S
PUBLIC HEALTH // The (Im)moral Crusade Against Science
CASAA director Jim McDonald writes in Vaping360 magazine about the “latest example of federal and state officials and anti-vaping special interest groups attempting to pressure the [FDA] to disregard the scientific review of tobacco products required by the Tobacco Control Act.”
State AGs Pressure FDA to Reject Flavored Vape PMTAs.
By Jim McDonald @whycherrywhy https://t.co/pqJnDQqdNd— Vaping360 (@Vaping360) August 19, 2021
READ MORE: State AGs Pressure FDA to Reject Flavored Vape PMTAs
PUBLIC HEALTH // Policy Consequences
Ocean City mayor, police chief, and city council skip meeting about police reform after violence against vaping teens. Reform is essential, but lawmakers must also question the policies themselves, and their inevitable consequences.
The Ocean City Police Department was at the center of controversy when officers subdued and tased a group of Black teens after one of them was seen vaping on the boardwalk.
Lawmakers said they want accountability for the incident, as well as reforms. https://t.co/hAX6IH0XUX
— WTOP (@WTOP) August 20, 2021
READ MORE: Lawmakers Gather Months After Video of Cops Using a Taser on Vaping Teen Goes Viral
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.