Category: Harm Reduction

  • Can cigarette butts take off?

    Can cigarette butts take off?

    Chemists at the UK’s University of Nottingham have discovered that carbons derived from cigarette butts have ultra-high surface areas and unprecedented hydrogen storage capacity, which could solve a major waste disposal problem while offering a way to store clean fuel, according to a story on physorg.com relayed by the TMA.

    Robert Mokaya, professor of materials chemistry, and Troy Scott Blankenship, an undergraduate project student, published their work in the academic journal Energy and Environmental Science.

    “We have utilised cigarette butt waste as starting material to prepare energy materials that offer unprecedented hydrogen storage properties,” said Mokaya.

    “This may not only address an intractable environmental pollution problem – cigarette butts – but also offers new insights into converting a major waste product into very attractive hydrogen storage materials.”

    Using hydrogen as a fuel is appealing because the only by-product when combined with oxygen is water.

    Mokaya said that this technique could be developed to replace, for example, gasoline as a transport fuel or natural gas as a heating fuel.

  • Report backs e-cigarettes

    Report backs e-cigarettes

    A group made up of members of the UK’s lower and upper houses of parliament have today urged the government to build upon Public Health England’s (PHE) ‘Stoptober’ anti-smoking campaign, which was the first of its kind to encourage the use of vaping as a means to quit smoking.

    In its report, The State of the Vaping Nation, the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on E-Cigarettes has called on the government and public health bodies to sustain and capitalise on the level of public engagement with vaping seen during Stoptober by launching a continuous program to keep promoting and accurately communicating the positive public health evidence for vaping.

    Meanwhile, following the PHE campaign, which emerged from the government’s commitment in its recently published Tobacco Control Plan to back the promotion of the positive public health opportunity of vaping, the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), the largest trade body representing the sector, has reported that its members have experienced significant increases in sales during Stoptober.

    ‘In particular, the APPG has seen evidence from the UKVIA that there has been a considerable rise in starter-kit sales this Stoptober, suggesting a significant increase in those smokers trying vaping for the first time, according to a press note issued on behalf of the APPG

    ‘Watford-based Vape Club, the UK’s largest online vape e-liquid shop and JAC Vapour, a leading retailer, wholesaler and producer of vaping products, have experienced increases in starter kit sales by 37 percent and 65 percent year on year respectively.

    ‘Edinburgh based Vaporized, the UK’s largest vape retail chain, added three more stores to its now 106 store portfolio and experienced a 40 percent year on year rise in sales this October.’

    Mark Pawsey MP, chairman of the APPG, was quoted as saying that the positive public health message regarding vaping had up to now been failing to get across to the UK’s remaining 7.6 million smokers.

    “The Public Health England campaign was a welcome change and has had an obvious effect, but it needs to be sustained, not just a one off.

    “That’s why today we are calling upon the government to ensure such campaigns become the norm, not an exception, so that the UK can fully exploit the public health potential of vaping.

    “Without these campaigns the current mixed messages surrounding vaping will continue and create a confusing picture.”

    The report says that currently 20 percent of people correctly identify that vaping is ‘a lot less harmful’ than is smoking, down from 31 percent in 2015.

    In addition, the number of adults who believe that vaping is ‘as harmful’, or ‘more harmful’ than smoking has risen from seven percent in 2013 to 26 percent in 2017.

    “We are concerned that aspects of the [EU] Tobacco Products Directive work against helping people to stop smoking by making life for vapers more difficult … and by preventing positive messages being shared among those who have been frightened off vaping by a hostile propaganda war,” said Louise Ross, Stop Smoking Service Manager for Leicester City Council, the first Stop Smoking Service to go e-cigarette friendly.

    The parliamentarians believe misinformation is actively preventing smokers from making the decision to switch to vaping. The number of UK vapers increased by four percent from 2016 to 2017.

  • After the Eclipse

    After the Eclipse

    R.J. Reynolds Tobacco is attempting to start a new chapter with its Eclipse heat-not-burn product, according to a story by Richard Craver for the Winston-Salem Journal.

    Craver said that Eclipse’s technology was considered to be ‘ahead of its time’ when developed in the 1990s, but that it had struggled to gain traction with smokers.

    But in July, Reynolds entered the Food and Drug Administration’s regulatory system with a substantial-equivalence application, according to an investor presentation on Wednesday by parent company British American Tobacco.

    A substantial-equivalence filing is for products that either have the same characteristics as those marketed on/before February 15, 2007, or have different characteristics but do not raise different questions of public health.

    “Our application is for an improved version of Eclipse based on the grandfathered version of the product,” Reynolds spokesman David Howard said.

    Howard said the improvements targeted the “sensory characteristics and ease of lighting” of Eclipse.

    “There is no definitive timetable for [FDA] review, but we are optimistic it will be completed in the near future,” he said.

    In the case of Eclipse, smokers light a carbon tip that heats air that, as it is inhaled, passes over a tobacco blend, picking up the flavors of that blend.

    Craver’s story is at: http://www.journalnow.com/business/reynolds-pursues-another-restart-with-revamped-heat-not-burn-cigarette/article_2be640ec-f0e8-517e-a9ff-8bee3b0fdf07.html.

  • SM’s sales up and down

    SM’s sales up and down

    Swedish Matches snus shipments in Scandinavia during the three months to the end of September, at 61.7 million cans, were increased by about two percent on those of the three months to the end of September 2016, 60.6 million cans.

    During the same periods, shipments of moist snuff in the US were down by about six percent to 33.6 million cans, while shipments of snus and nicotine pouches outside Scandinavia were increased by 74 percent to 3.5 million cans.

    Swedish Match’s share of the Swedish snus market was down by 2.2 percentage points to 64.9 percent, while its share of Norway’s snus market was down by 1.2 percentage points to 52.0 percent.

    The company’s cigar shipments during the three months to the end of September, at 405 million pieces, were increased by about one percent on those of the three months to the end of September 2016, 402 million pieces.

    During the same periods, the company’s chewing tobacco shipments, excluding contract-manufacturing volumes, fell by about six percent to about 1,636,000 pounds.

    Sales increased by one percent in local currencies, but reported sales declined by one percent to SEK4,069 million for the third quarter.

    “This has been an exciting quarter for Swedish Match, where we have further demonstrated our commitment toward our vision of a world without cigarettes as evidenced by our efforts in modern smokeless products,” said CEO Lars Dahlgren in reporting Swedish Match’s third quarter and nine-months results.

    “We have been introducing innovative new products, and continued to expand in new markets, organically as well as via the acquisition of the Danish smokeless tobacco business, V2 Tobacco.

    “In the world around us, there exists a continuously growing interest, from consumers, industry players and certain important policymakers, in tobacco harm reduction. Where regulators have yet to acknowledge a more science-based approach to tobacco regulation, we have continued to make our voice and solid fact base heard.

    “At the same time, we have continued our strong commitment toward our more traditional businesses, often in very competitive environments.

    “For the quarter, sales and profit from product areas demonstrated resilience. Currency translation effects turned negative this quarter but sales grew in local currencies for both snus and moist snuff and other tobacco products…”

  • E-cig consultation launched

    The Science and Technology Committee of the UK Parliament has launched a public consultation to ‘examine the impact of electronic cigarettes on human health (including their effectiveness as a stop-smoking tool), the suitability of regulations guiding their use, and the financial implications of a growing market on both business and the NHS’, according to a Bloomberg News story relayed by the TMA, and a report by Sarah Knapton for telegraph.co.uk.

    The chair of the committee, Norman Lamb MP, said that almost three million people in the UK now used e-cigarettes, but that there were still significant gaps in the research guiding their regulation and sale.

    “They are seen by some as valuable tools that will reduce the number of people smoking ‘conventional’ cigarettes, and seen by others as ‘re-normalising’ smoking for the younger generation,” Lamb said.

    “We want to understand where the gaps are in the evidence base, the impact of the regulations, and the implications of this growing industry on NHS costs and the UK’s public finances.”

    Written submissions will be accepted until December 8.

  • Low-nicotine policy debated

    Low-nicotine policy debated

    The US Food and Drug Administration’s proposed reduced-nicotine policy is only one of several options that should compete for regulatory and scientific resources, and political capital, according to a press note issued by the R Street Institute.

    The Institute’s harm reduction policy manager Carrie Wade and associate fellow Clive Bates say the proposed policy should be evaluated against alternative strategies that degrade the appeal of smoking and provide low-risk alternatives.

    FDA commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb recently committed his agency to focusing on reducing nicotine in tobacco cigarettes in an effort to address the underlying cause of smoking-related diseases and deaths.

    And in a new Institute report, Wade and Bates explore some of the issues facing the FDA and proponents of the nicotine-reduction strategy, and suggest a potential way forward.

    ‘The focus on nicotine as an effort to address the underlying cause of smoking-related diseases and deaths is rationalized on the basis that people smoke tobacco primarily to consume nicotine,’ the note said. ‘The thinking is, by lowering nicotine levels in cigarettes to non-addictive levels, we will decrease the likelihood that future generations become addicted to cigarettes and allow more currently addicted smokers to quit.

    ‘But as Wade and Bates point out, the reduced-nicotine policy option is only one of several that should compete for regulatory and scientific resources, and political capital. In fact, it should be evaluated against alternative strategies that degrade the appeal of smoking and provide low-risk alternatives.’

    “If the coercive reduced-nicotine strategy is to retain any credibility at all, it will be necessary to have alternative low-risk nicotine delivery systems readily available, so that these products can play a significant role in the behavioral response to the rule,” Wade was quoted as saying.

    “These low-risk alternatives should also be regulated proportionately and in ways that support diversity and innovation, rather than creating excessive regulatory barriers to entry that would establish a new tobacco industry oligopoly.”

    The authors maintain that the superior and more urgent strategy is to promote the migration of smokers from combustible to non-combustible ‘alternative nicotine delivery systems’ by choice.

    ‘As the policy paper demonstrates, this is both a prerequisite for the FDA’s reduced-nicotine strategy and, if successful, will render that strategy unnecessary,’ the note said.

    The reports is available here.

    R Street describes itself as a non-profit public policy research organization that supports free markets; limited, effective government; and responsible environmental stewardship.

  • Vaping blasts bugs

    Vaping blasts bugs

    A study by scientists based in Glasgow, Scotland, suggests that one of the chemicals in e-liquids kills off bugs that make people ill, according to a story by Mark Howarth for the Sunday Post.

    A report of the study published in the journal Medical Hypotheses suggests that breathing in the fumes of propylene glycol could help destroy even long-term infections.

    The new research describes the case of a woman who had suffered tonsillitis for nine years and whose symptoms vanished within weeks of taking up vaping.

    The 26-year-old computer scientist, who had never smoked, had come to accept there was no medical treatment for her condition and had stopped seeking help.

    She took up vaping when her partner quit smoking for e-cigarettes and, within about three months, realized that her symptoms had disappeared.

    ‘She has now been vaping for eight months and her tonsillitis has not recurred,’ the report says. ‘She has not suffered a single respiratory infection or common cold.’

    “As this is a never-smoker, the improvements cannot be attributed to smoking cessation,” said lead author Dr. Joanna Astrid Miler, of the Glasgow-based Centre for Substance Use Research. “One possible explanation is that the improvement was due to antimicrobial properties of propylene glycol.

    “A trial of vaping zero-nicotine e-cigarettes in patients with recurrent throat infections could clarify whether this is an effect that could benefit others.”

    Previous research has found that propylene glycol, which is a synthetic compound of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, is effective in tackling bacteria linked to the onset of colds and sore throats, such as Streptococcus and Staphylococcus.

    The latest study was produced in conjunction with Queen Mary University, London.

    The full story is at: https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/holy-e-smoke-experts-say-vaping-can-help-cure-sore-throats/

  • A glowing example

    A glowing example

    British American Tobacco says that toxicant levels in vapor from its heat-not-burn (HNB) tobacco product, glo™, have been found to be about 90 percent lower than the levels in traditional-cigarette smoke.

    In heating rather than burning tobacco, glo operated at much lower temperatures than did a cigarette: about 240̊C versus 900̊C, BAT said in a press note issued to coincide with the publication in Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology of the results of a BAT study.

    “Our studies on glo reveal that this product produces significantly lower levels of harmful or potentially harmful components compared to a cigarette,” Dr. James Murphy, head of reduced risk substantiation at BAT was quoted as saying. “The vapor produced was found to have significantly reduced numbers and lower levels of toxicants compared to cigarette smoke, and so it should in principle expose consumers to much less toxicants,” he says.

    ‘It is the toxicants in smoke that cause most smoking-related diseases,’ said BAT in its note.

    ‘Scientists at British American Tobacco analysed and compared the vapor from glo™ – a commercially available tobacco heating product (THP) – and smoke from a reference cigarette (3R4F) and found substantial reductions in the glo™ emissions for all smoke toxicant groups measured. Most cigarette smoke toxicants could not be detected in the glo™ vapor.’

    “This comprehensive chemical assessment is part of a science-based approach that we have developed to demonstrate the reduced-risk potential of THPs and other next generation products relative to smoking cigarettes,” said Murphy. “We believe that such an approach is essential to communicating to consumers and regulators that the available information on our products is based on sound, evidence-based science.”

    ‘The scientists set out to measure 126 substances, including toxicants that have been identified by Health Canada, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the WHO Study Group on Tobacco Product Regulation (TobReg) as harmful or potentially harmful to health, and other compounds produced by burning tobacco,’ the note said.

    ‘A smoking robot was used to generate smoke or vapor in the laboratory in a way that mimics realistic use of the products. Air samples were also produced with which to compare the smoke and vapor.

    ‘An analysis of the emissions showed that glo™ produces a much simpler aerosol than cigarettes.  glo™ emitted over 95 percent less, on average, of 102 of 126 compounds that could be measured, compared to smoke. For the nine toxicants that the WHO proposes for lowering in cigarette smoke, the overall average reduction was 97.1 percent, while for the 18 requiring mandatory reporting by the FDA, it was 97.5 percent.  Twenty-four substances could not be detected/quantified in the glo™ emissions, smoke or both.

    ‘The findings add to a body of evidence that could be used to support glo™ as a potential reduced-risk product compared to conventional cigarettes.’

  • Tobacco under pressure

    Tobacco under pressure

    The leader of Turkey’s main opposition party, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, has said that Turkey’s oriental tobacco is being eradicated, according to a story by Zülfikar Doğan for Al-Monitor.

    “In 2002, 405,882 families were making a living from tobacco,” said Kılıçdaroğlu during a CHP [Republican People’s Party, Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi] parliamentary meeting. “In 2015, that shrunk to 56,000. We gave up growing our own tobacco. Foreigners began importing, and as of 2012, Turkey suddenly became a net tobacco importer.”

    Another problem, Kılıçdaroğlu said, concerned cigarette taxation, which stood at 84 percent and which had caused a sharp rise in the number of people rolling their own cigarettes.

    The story reported that Turkey’s farmers, livestock producers and their related unions were emerging as a new and unexpected mass opposition in the country, staging rallies and marches to protest against sustained heavy economic losses.

    Meanwhile, in the tobacco sector, growers are said to have reacted with fury to threats of heavy prison sentences and fines.

    Tobacco growers have protested against new regulations restricting how, where and when Turks can produce tobacco.

    The aim of the legislation was said to be aimed at preventing tobacco smuggling.

    But the Tobacco Experts Association said that with the new restrictions, thousands of tobacco growers would be facing years in jail and heavy fines.

    The association expressed opposition also to the liberalization of electronic cigarettes and alleged that the new regulations were drafted in line with wishes of foreign cigarette companies and would soon mean the end of the local tobacco industry.

    The full story is at: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/10/turkey-farmers-protest-against-government-policies.html.

  • Vaping-kit sales boosted

    Vaping-kit sales boosted

    Sales of vaping starter kits in the UK rose by 37 percent year-on-year after vaping featured prominently in the National Health Service’s (NHS) Stoptober campaign, according to a story by Liz Wells for Talking Retail, quoting a leading retailer.

    This year, for the first time, electronic cigarettes are being featured in the NHS’ campaign, which challenges smokers to give up cigarettes for 28 days during the month of October.

    “It’s fantastic to see the NHS finally backing vaping as a pathway to quit smoking,” Dan Marchant, director of online retailer Vape Club, was quoted as saying.

    “The industry has been backing this alternative for a long time, but with the evidence provided by Public Health England, endorsements from the likes of Cancer Research UK and the figures which are produced by Action on Smoking and Health, there can be no doubt that vaping is the most effective method to give up tobacco.

    “The NHS advocating vaping as an alternative to tobacco is an enormous breakthrough and will do an outstanding amount of good for public health and tobacco control in the UK.”