Study shows the danger in banning e-cigarette flavours

As measures proposing to ban e-liquid flavours keep popping up, especially across the US, the latest research indicates what public health experts have been saying all along. Restricting the availability of such flavours will prevent many smokers from switching to the safer alternatives, and drive former smokers back to smoking.

Diane Caruana

October 5, 2017

E-liquid flavours are despised by many and have been the subject of controversy, amongst suspicions that manufacturers only produce them to entice kids to try vaping. Infact, only last week a state lawmaker from Manhattan, assemblywoman Linda Rosenthal, introduced a bill to ban the sale and distribution of flavoured e-cigarette liquids in New York.

“That kind of product is meant to appeal to kids,” she said whilst echoing the unsound arguments made by the previous Surgeon General. “I don’t know many adults who would like to inhale bubble gum or strawberry vapor,” she mistakenly said.

However, public health experts have been pointing out that while the utmost must be done to prevent kids’ accessibility to obtaining such products, making them unavailable to adults will have negative consequences. It is a known fact that many smokers are encouraged to try the significantly safer products, because of the wide array of flavours available. And yet another study backs up these arguments.

“Recent quitters display a preference for fruit/sweet flavored e-cigarettes, but not for other flavored e-cigarettes.”Study from Yale School of Public Health and the Centre for Health Policy at the Imperial College in London

Research from Yale School of Public Health and the Centre for Health Policy at the Imperial College in London, conducted research with the help of 2,000 adult smokers and recent quitters. “Our results are timely and policy-relevant, suggesting which flavor bans are likely to be most effective in protecting public health,” said the researchers.

The focus should be on banning flavoured combustible cigarettes

If menthol cigarettes were banned, there would be a 4.8% reduction in smoking, as most smokers would either switch to e-cigs, or quit.

The data collected suggests that if flavours had to be banned in e-cigarettes and allowed in regular cigarettes, vaping would decline by over 10%. Banning e-liquid flavors would stir many former smokers back to smoking regular cigarettes, hence increase cancer and mortality rates. On the other hand, if menthol flavoured cigarettes were banned, there would be a 4.8% reduction in smoking, as most smokers would either switch to e-cigarettes, or quit.

“Unsurprisingly, both dual users and vapers (those using only e-cigarettes) show very strong preferences for all types of e-cigarette, and vapers prefer e-cigarettes to combustible cigarettes. Lastly, recent quitters display a preference for fruit/sweet flavored e-cigarettes, but not for other flavored e-cigarettes.” read the study, clearly indicating that it is flavoured combustible cigarettes that lawmakers should focus on banning, rather than the safer alternatives.

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