Rest In Peace Our Neil…
As you may have seen we have sadly lost a key member of our team, our Editor, friend and colleague Neil Humber.
We have set up a Just Giving page to aid with the funeral costs for his family and the donations have been flying in.
Thank you to all who donated – it is very much appreciated! Also thank you for the wonderful messages of condolence we have received on our Social Media pages.
As you can imagine the Ecigclick team have been very shaken by this and we are all trying to carry on with our work the best we can.
We want to preserve and continue the legacy that Neil has created of being vaping advocates, reviewers and suppliers of information. He was an outstanding writer and investigator in this field and we will never forget him. We were indeed very lucky to have him on our team.
We send love and strength to Neil’s family and loved ones.
After the sad loss of our Friend and Colleague Neil Humber @FlophouseFlip we have created a #JustGiving page to help raise £1000 to Cover Funeral Costs – if you want to donate – thank you so much https://t.co/OrbQR41tKi #Vape #Ecigclick #THR pic.twitter.com/hUB9Wiao3a
— EcigClick (@EcigClick) March 6, 2022
If you would like to donate you can do so here https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/neilhumber.
Vapril
Hot on the heels of “National No Smoking Day” which was March 9th – we have Vapril!
📣With #VApril 2022 coming up next month, remember that you can download our new assets which include social graphics, branding, guides and more!
These are available to anyone in the harm reduction community and are free to use. ✅
Check them out here ⬇️https://t.co/JCZM8OlSF2 pic.twitter.com/49H1rS9qew
— UKVIA (@Vaping_Industry) March 7, 2022
The UKVIA (UK Vape Industry Association) has created a page of downloads to help you promote the message of what Vapril is all about.
Throughout the month of April the aim is to inform smokers about the potential of Vaping to help them quit and give them all the information they could need.
Plus of course you can visit the Vapril.org website for more info.
We will be joining in and sharing the information and it would be great if you all could too using the Hashtag #Vapril !
Welsh Tobacco Control Plan
The Welsh Government have begun a consultation to help formulate the Tobacco Control Strategy.
The government are aiming for a “Smoke-Free Wales” by 2030 and are inviting comments on how to achieve this.
You can submit your comments here – so make sure to get your voice heard before the consultation closes on 31st March 2022.
The page also includes plenty of downloadable consultation documents which you can read and give your feedback on.
BMJ Tobacco Control In Europe
The document “Tobacco Control In Europe : Progress and Key Challenges” has just been updated by the BMJ (British Medical Journal) Tobacco Control department.
The journal discusses the progress made in EU tobacco control and how each region is performing.
As you can see (not trying to blow our own Trumpet or look smug) – the UK and Ireland are still top of the Tobacco Control Scale for 2007 and 2019.
The Journal compares the performance of 53 countries who are part of the WHO Framework for Tobacco Control (FCTC).
Unfortunately the European region has one of the highest proportions of premature deaths due to tobacco use and the rate of smoking is declining very slowly.
This is a very information dense document and I will not be able to cover all of the interesting data supplied in it so it is worth a read for yourself. Get comfy and download it here.
Scottish Vaping Opinions
The Scottish Newspaper – the Scotsman – is discussing Vaping in Scotland.
They have quoted the GoSmokeFree survey which I mentioned above plus some more Scotland specific data.
Apparently 1 in 5 adults still smoke cigarettes and NHS Scotland are to work with smokers who want to quit by vaping.
Apparently 7% use e-cigarettes and more than half (59%) found this successfully helped them stay off the cigarettes for a month or longer.
University Of Oxford Vaping Podcasts
The University of Oxford have created a range of podcasts discussing e-cigarettes and studies.
A team of researchers have been looking monthly at new e-cigarette studies and discussing them.
The podcast has been funded by Cancer Research UK and there are 13 podcasts at present on the website.
Discussions include the Cochrane Living Reviews other evidence and some respond to questions from listeners.
You can access them here https://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/series/lets-talk-e-cigarettes.
Global Forum on Nicotine 2022
The Global Forum on Nicotine 2022 is to be held in Warsaw Poland on 16-18th June and you can register here to purchase a ticket to attend in person.
The theme for this year is “Tobacco Harm Reduction – Here For Good” and will address the impact and reports from around the world.
However due to Covid restrictions preventing some people from travelling to the event GFNTV will be broadcasting all the proceedings live! Also from 3rd March 2022 there will be a regular news program you can watch.
You can also submit your own short presentations of 5 minutes called GFN Fives prior to the event and these may be included and stored online.
CRUK Survey
Cancer Research UK is conducting a survey to gather views from smokers, ex-smokers and those who have never smoked about their attitude to Tobacco.
Please get involved and get your opinion heard and let them know how Vaping has aided you to quit and how you think it could help others.
Tobacco is the biggest preventable cause of cancer and death in the UK.
Regardless of your cancer or smoking experience, we want you to help to create a campaign that makes people aware of this, and to reduce smoking rates to save lives. More info: https://t.co/SRV32HgZYW
— CRUK Policy (@CRUK_Policy) March 8, 2022
It mentions that the aim is to secure a UK-Wide Tobacco Industry Levy tax to help finance Stop Smoking services.
The campaign will be launched in Spring 2022 and you could help form this by adding your views to the survey. Oh and don’t forget to share it on Social Media!
Vapeman Recall
The UKVIA (UK Vape Industry Association) has shared the information that “Vapeman” branded products for sale in the UK are subject to a Recall.
Apparently this is due to the fact the company had not completed the process of notification to the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency).
Without approval any brand cannot sell in the UK market. You can check out what brands are registered here – MHRA.
We Love Flavours!
Filter – the Harm Reduction Journal has shared this video from Dr Konstantinos Farsalinos – a Greek Vaping expert which extols the virtues of how Adults benefit from different flavour vapes.
I mean I am 46 and gave up smoking nearly 3 years ago with Bubblegum flavour e-liquid and I still use it!
Dr Farsalinos is a Cardiologist and a research fellow at the Onassis Cardiac Surgery Centre in Athens to name a few of his affiliations, and is a world renowned researcher in the Tobacco Harm Reduction field.
He has quit smoking using vaping and so has his 72 year old Mother both using flavours which were not Tobacco or Menthol!
BMJ Report – Impact of “EVALI” on E-cigarette Opinion
You have all probably heard the controversial term “EVALI” – which stands for “E-cigarette Vaping product use associated Lung Injury”.
To be honest this description has been proved to be Bin-Worthy as the injuries were not caused by simple Nicotine vaping but by dodgy THC cartridges.
Sadly the fact that “e-cigarette” and “vaping” are still part of the title has caused a lot of negative views towards vaping.
The BMJ (British Medical Journal) has compiled a report discussing how a year on this is still impacting smoker’s opinions of vaping.
The report shows that this still remains the case and that efforts need to be made to promote better understanding of this illness and stop the prejudice against vaping.
You can read the basics of the report here but you do need to purchase the full report if you want to view it.
UKVIA Helping Homeless People Quit Smoking
The UKVIA (UK Vape Industry Association) have joined forces with the Ipswich Night Shelter to support those staying with the shelter to stop smoking.
The shelter has provided a dedicated Vaping Room for guests and various UKVIA members have contributed vaping supplies to assist.
Oxford Vapers, Riot Labs and V2 Cigs have so far provided hundreds of devices and e-liquid to the shelter.
One of the residents is quoted as saying…
‘I am pleased I was able to try vaping without all the upfront costs. Trying it led to me liking it and within a week I had given up cigarettes completely and moved onto vaping, and that is the first time in 25 years I have gone longer than a day without a cigarette.’
What a wonderful initiative and I sincerely hope more organisations take part to help the health of those who need it.
Read the full article here.
Irish Tobacco Control
The Irish Times Newspaper printed an article calling for an increase to the age limit for buying Tobacco and Nicotine Products to 21.
Also there is a mention that flavoured vapes should be banned and advertising restrictions which apply to Tobacco should also apply to vaping products.
Hmm I am not impressed.
These statements were made by Prof Des Cox who is the chair of the RCPI (Royal College of Physicians of Ireland) Policy Group On Tobacco. The comments were made at the Public Health (Tobacco and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill at the Oireachtas Health Committee.
Thankfully VBI (Vape Business Ireland) has hit back stating that 200,000 people across Ireland are vapers and banning flavours would drive people back to smoking.
John Dunne of the UKVIA and VBI said a ban on selling products to under 18s is supported however the blanket bans on flavours and advertising were not supported by the VBI.
He also said…
“e-cigarettes were the best smoking cessation device, and Ireland should look to Public Health England who recommend vaping as a safer alternative to smoking.”
You can read the VBI / John Dunne opening statement on this hearing dated 1/3/22 here.
All the vape retailers who belong to the VBI are strict about under age vaping and will request ID.
Read more about the proposals that the RCPI want introduced on their website here.
If you want to read other documents related to this bill visit the Oireachtais website here.
Sounds like there will be a bit of a fight to protect the rights of vapers in Ireland sadly.
Phew there was a lot going on in Vapeland this week – I will be back with more next Friday! Have a great week!
