In October 2017, Turkey had announced that it was withdrawing plans to start importing and producing Heat not Burn (HnB) products and electronic cigarettes. Anti-smoking experts had pointed out that this move would be detrimental to public health, but sadly the World Health Organization (WHO), had applauded it.
Subsequently, a recent article in local news site Ahval, has reported that the Health Ministry is currently working on a legislation which would set in place a total vaping ban. The proposed measure is expected to be presented to parliament in the coming weeks.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, is expected to support the measure as he is known to have said that vaping products are “bizarre” and addictive. In September, he said the ministry and customs officials were working to ban the entrance of e-cigarettes into the country.
Bans around the world
In response to the infamous vape-related serious lung disease outbreak across several US states, other countries are also implementing such measures. Last month, the Health Ministry of Israel announced that it will be imposing an immediate ban on flavoured vaping products whilst also considering a total e-cig ban.
“I call on the public to not wait for new rules and regulations and simply stop using things that hurt their health,” said Israel’s Health Ministry Director-General Moshe Bar Siman Tov. Similarly, Indian Ministers have just announced a complete e-cigarette ban, whilst leaving the far more dangerous combustible cigarettes widely available to the public.
US lung disease linked to the consumption of illicit products
Meanwhile, confirming previous reports, a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, has indicated that the vast majority of patients suffering from the vape-related lung disease that has made its way across the US, had used unlicensed THC products.
The researchers looked into 53 cases by patients in Illinois and Wisconsin, who had vaped within 90 days of their symptoms, typically within the previous week. Most of these patients, 84%, admitted to vaping illegally purchased cannabis products.
“Patients reported using 14 distinct brands of THC products and 13 brands of nicotine products in a wide range of flavors,” said the researchers. “The most common THC product that was reported was marketed under the ‘Dank Vape’ label (reported by 24 of 41 interviewed patients [59%]). Patients reported use of a number of different e-cigarette devices to aerosolize these products.”
