E-CIGARETTES - SCI & TECH
News: Don’t
promote electronic cigarettes, Information
& Broadcasting Ministry tells media, TV channels
What's in the news?
● The
Information & Broadcasting Ministry warned the print media, TV channels,
OTT (over-the-top) platforms and digital media against directly or indirectly
promoting electronic cigarettes.
Key takeaways:
● The
Ministry said that the print, electronic and digital media entities are
accordingly advised to ensure that the aforementioned statute is not
contravened either by way of advertisement or any promotion or other campaign,
etc.
● Such
an act was in violation of Section 4 of
the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import,
Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Act, 2019,
which prohibits advertisements that directly or indirectly promote the use of
electronic cigarettes.
E-cigarettes:
● E-cigarettes
are battery-powered devices that
heat a solution of nicotine and different flavours to create an aerosol, which
is then inhaled.
● These
belong to a category of vapour-based
nicotine products called Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS).
Government ban:
● In
2019, the Indian government banned
the production, manufacture, import, export, transport, sale, distribution,
storage and advertisement of all ENDS.
Ingredients:
● E-liquid
is composed of five ingredients: vegetable
glycerin (a material used in all types of food and personal care products,
like toothpaste) and propylene glycol
(a solvent most commonly used in fog machines.)
● Propylene
glycol is the ingredient that produces thicker clouds of vapor.
● The
World Health Organization says, adding that these solutions and emissions also
contain some solutions that are considered to be “toxicants”.
● The
aerosol containing a suspension of fine particles and gases simulates cigarette
smoke. Following a puff, the aerosol is delivered to the user’s mouth and lungs
and the rest is exhaled.
Impacts of E-cigarette:
● The
use of ENDS or e-cigarettes adversely affects almost all the human body systems
with impact across the life course, from the womb to tomb.
● The
cartridges used in ENDS or e-cigarettes are filled with liquid nicotine,
flavouring agents and other chemicals.
● A
typical cartridge contains about as much nicotine as a pack of 20 regular
cigarettes and can act as a potential source for nicotine addiction.
● Studies
on these nicotine solvents had shown a varied degree of release of potential carcinogens depending on the
battery output voltage.
● The
liquid-vaporizing solutions also contain toxic chemicals and metals that have
been demonstrated to be responsible for several adverse health effects,
including cancers and diseases of the heart, lungs and brain.