Ayesha Verrall, the deputy minister of health in New Zealand, revealed to journalists that the Ministry of Health is currently seeking public feedback on proposed regulations to address the increasing teenage use of e-cigarettes.
We need to strike a better balance. Electronic cigarettes can help people quit smoking, but we don't want children to start using them directly," she said.
The proposals include preventing new e-cigarette retailers from opening near schools and sports fields; requiring child-attractive flavors to be labeled with generic descriptions on packaging; introducing a range of safety requirements for all e-cigarette products; and reducing the maximum allowed nicotine salt concentration in disposable e-cigarettes from 50mg/mL to 35mg/mL.
The proposal will not alter the product, but we do hope to cease the use of child-friendly names for the taste. Referring to something as a 'gummy bear' indicates it is candy, whereas these products are not lollipops," said Verrall.
She said that the Ministry of Health is seeking input from the e-cigarette industry and the public on these proposals.
But we know that we really need to strengthen the control of e-cigarettes amongst teenagers.
Chris Theobald, the principal of Bishop Viard College, has welcomed these measures, stating that the school's staff has observed the various ways in which electronic cigarettes have affected student life.
He stated that "in certain situations, students clearly become addicted to electronic cigarettes, resulting in behaviors that can affect their sleep, health, and interactions with others.
Theobald stated that changing certain flavor labels that are "directly targeting our youth" to more generic taste terminology is the first step, but the next measure that should be taken is to remove these flavors entirely.
Letitia Harding, CEO of the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation of New Zealand, has expressed her support for these proposals. However, she hopes to see a maximum nicotine concentration limit of 20 milligrams for all e-cigarette products.
We will still demand that it is 20 milligrams because the highly addictive nature of nicotine causes our children to become addicted and dependent on these products," she said.
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