Speedy law amendment suggested to contain E-cigarette use

Staff Reporter :
The growing use of e-cigarettes has given rise to serious public health concerns, according to experts.

In their opinion, vamping and e-cigarettes are just as detrimental to health as cigarettes and therefore, should be banned through speedy amendment of the law.

To safeguard public health, a total of 32 countries which include India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Singapore, have already banned e-cigarettes.

In this regard, Emeritus Professor and personal physician of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Dr ABM Abdullah said, “Many health risks are associated with the consumption of e-cigarettes including asthma, lung cancer and heart diseases.”

The medicine specialist recommended banning these products through legislation and put emphasis on ensuring the implementation of the law.

In Bangladesh, about three crore 78 lakh adults use tobacco. The number of smokeless tobacco users stands at 22 million (20.6 per cent) and the number of smokers stand at 192 million (18 per cent). Every year 1 lakh 61 thousand people die prematurely in the country due to tobacco-related diseases.

The recently published Global Tobacco Epidemic 2021 report by the World Health Organization (WHO) has identified all emerging tobacco products including Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS), i.e. e-cigarettes, as dangerous for health. They cause various health problems including addiction.

When contacted, Professor Dr. M. Muzaherul Huq, former Adviser of the World Health Organisation (WHO), told The New Nation, “E-cigarettes is unsafe for children, teens, and young adults as well as adults. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine and can contain other harmful substances besides nicotine.”

The professor also said, while smoking is harmful the e- cigarettes are harmful too. The youths are being attracted and being habituated, they are also quite sure to be habituated to smoking. The best way is to ban the e cigarettes or at least banning it’s sales around schools and other training institute. Selling it to youths should also be a serious punishable offence.

When asked about the current status of the law amendment process, Hossain Ali Khondakar, Coordinator of the National Tobacco Control Cell (NTCC) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, said that the amendment proposal is expected to be brought up in the Cabinet this month.

“The Ministry of Health believes that e-cigarettes and vaping are as harmful to health as cigarettes. Therefore, a complete ban on the manufacture, import and sale of e-cigarettes has been proposed in the draft law,” he added.

Voice of Vapers (VoV) and Asia Harm Reduction Alliance (AHRA) recently organized a summit and roundtable with a view to eliminating the proposed ban on e-cigarettes and vape products from the draft amendment to the tobacco control law, orchestrated by the grantees and representatives of Foundation for a Smoke-free World (FSFW), a Philip Morris International (PMI) sponsored front group.

A number of representatives from different relevant government bodies also participated in the events, which were covered extensively in mass media and social media platforms.

The Prime Minister has instructed the Health Ministry to amend the tobacco control law, to make it more in line with WHO FCTC and compatible with the vision of building a tobacco-free country by 2040.