"Tobacco companies still actively target young people via social media, sports and music festivals and new, flavoured products, the World Health Organization (WHO) said [last] Thursday, accusing companies of trying to hook a new generation on nicotine. Amid ever-stricter regulation targeting cigarettes, big tobacco companies and new entrants have begun offering smoking alternatives such as vapes, which they say are aimed at adult smokers. But the WHO said these products' are often marketed to youth… "History is repeating itself, but in a different form. The same nicotine with a different packaging," said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO's director-general." [No author. Tobacco and nicotine industry 'hooking the next generation,' WHO report says, CBC News/Thompson Reuters. See also: Tobacco industry ‘aggressively’ targeting youth with ‘manipulative’ tactics: WHO, Global News (Canada); Tobacco and nicotine industry tactics addict youth for life, WHO; Report: Hooking the next generation: how the tobacco industry captures young customers, WHO]

 

"Disposable e-cigarettes have led to a tripling of vaping in young adults and reversed a historic fall in nicotine use, a new study shows. Researchers at University College London found that 29 per cent of people aged 18 to 24 in England used vapes in May 2023, up from 9 per cent in May 2021. This surge coincided with the arrival of single-use e-cigarettes, such as Elf Bars, which are cheap and often come in bright colours and fruity flavours. Although smoking rates have declined, the popularity of disposable vapes mean that overall nicotine use has increased among young adults — many of whom who would “otherwise have avoided nicotine entirely”." [Eleanor Hayward. Disposable e-cigarettes lead to tripling of vaping in young adults, The Times. See below: Lancet study]

 

"Rishi Sunak's flagship bill to eventually ban smoking looks set to be shelved after he called a surprise July general election. The prime minister would not guarantee the law would pass before Parliament [shut] down for the election [last] Friday. Talks between the government and opposition parties over which bills to rush through before then are ongoing. Labour has previously pledged to bring in the ban if it wins power at the election on Thursday 4 July. Mr Sunak also remains committed to creating a "smoke-free generation" and the ban is likely to feature in the Conservative manifesto." [Paul Seddon, Vicki Young. Rishi Sunak's smoking ban bill set to be shelved due to election, BBC News. See also: Video: Sunak 'disappointed' smoking ban bill did not get through, BBC News; Will banning cigarettes create a smoke-free generation?, New Statesman. See below: Science Editorial]

 

"For months now, Cancer Research UK has been campaigning in favour of the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, and I had been quietly optimistic that my son and his friends would be forever protected from a lifetime of addiction to tobacco. But this week, that all changed. When the general election was called by the prime minister, hard-won progress on the bill was brought to a grinding halt. And now, as the bill slips through the cracks during wash-up, we are heading back to square one… I want my son to live in a world where cancers caused by smoking are a thing of the past. Our political leaders want the same for their children, too. I implore them to think not just about the next five years they might potentially spend in office, but to look beyond to the future. Failure to do so would be a betrayal of an entire generation. " [Michelle Mitchell, Chief Executive, Cancer Research UK. Abandoning the Tobacco and Vapes Bill would betray a generation, Politics.co.uk]

 

"Last fall, [former tobacco control activist Cliff] Douglas announced he was taking the helm of the Foundation for a Smoke-Free World, an organization with the stated goal to “end smoking in this generation.” Philip Morris International, which sells cigarettes globally but not in the United States, has been the foundation’s sole funder since its inception in 2017…. Douglas said that PMI had no role in his hiring, and that he was selected by the foundation’s wholly independent board of directors. He negotiated a split with PMI before taking the job, though the foundation will likely be dependent on its funding for some time thanks to a $140 million final payment. He also is renaming the organization, which… will be called Global Action to End Smoking… “We are public health, pure and simple,” Douglas said." [Nicholas Florko. After decades fighting Big Tobacco, Cliff Douglas now leads a foundation funded by his former adversaries, STAT News]

 

" Pre-disposables, vaping and smoking prevalence had been stable or declining across all age groups. However, post-disposables, the odds of current vaping increased by 99% per year among 18 to 24-year-olds (odds ratio [OR] = 1.99; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.71 to 2.31), compared with 39% (OR = 1.39; 95% CI = 1.26 to 1.52) in 25 to 44-year-olds and 23% (OR = 1.23; 95% CI = 1.12 to 1.35) in those aged 45 or older… Interpretation: Since disposable vapes started becoming popular in England, historic declines in nicotine use have reversed. Now, nicotine use appears to be rising, driven primarily by sharp increases in vaping among young people. Smoking declines have been most pronounced in age groups with the largest increases in vaping."

 

Trends in vaping and smoking following the rise of disposable e-cigarettes: a repeat cross-sectional study in England between 2016 and 2023

Lancet Global Health

Published: May 23, 2024

Harry Tattan-Birch, Jamie Brown, Lion Shahab, Emma Beard, Sarah E. Jackson

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanepe/article/PIIS2666-7762(24)00091-7/fulltext

 

Note: Open Access.

 

Related coverage:

 

Disposable e-cigarettes lead to tripling of vaping in young adults

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/disposable-e-cigarettes-lead-to-tripling-of-vaping-in-young-adults-0m8p38dp2

 

"Politicians fueled by tobacco industry lobbying argue that sunset laws are paternalist, undermining freedom of choice. Yet smoking is far from a free choice. Most smokers want to stop, but seductive marketing and packaging disguise severe harms, and deliberately elevated nicotine levels drive compulsive use. Governments have no moral or legal justification to allow the wide availability of a deadly product that their own health agencies warn against using. The truth is that there is no safe age to start smoking. Preventing tobacco dependency, beginning with young people, would garner huge public support."

 

Editorial

Pursuing a smoke-free generation

SCIENCE

23 May 2024 Vol 384, Issue 6698 p. 829

LAWRENCE O. GOSTIN

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adq5006

 

Note: Open Access.