Minors in Cyprus have access to nicotine-free cigarettes due to ambiguity in the 2017 tobacco control legislation, reports In-Cyprus.
Nicotine-free products are easily accessible, on kiosk stalls next to cash registers and separate from other tobacco products as well as in cafes. The products have attractive packaging and are available in a variety of fruit flavors.
Over a year ago, the Cyprus Addiction Prevention Authority wrote to the Legal Service requesting an opinion on the nicotine-free tobacco products but did not receive a reply.
According to the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs, 16-year-old students in Cyprus reduced conventional cigarette use and switched to new tobacco products like hookah and e-cigarettes in 2019. Daily use of e-cigarettes by students in Cyprus is 4.6 percent compared to the average of 3.1 percent.