Cotton-candy countdown: new vape rules target rising youth addiction
Electronic cigarettes with candy-flavored additives — such as cotton candy, marshmallow or donut — will soon disappear from Czech vape stores. A new amendment to the law tightening the rules for the sale and labeling of electronic cigarettes which took effect on December 1st, gives outlets seven months to sell off existing stocks. After that it will no longer be possible to sell candy-flavored e-cigarettes or those containing cannabinoids.
According to a survey by the National Institute of Public Health (SZÚ), almost 14 percent of the population used e-cigarettes last year; over five years, the share has nearly tripled. Among young people aged 15 to 24, more than a quarter use them - the vast majority opting for candy-flavours.
Experts have been ringing alarm bells, pointing out that nicotine negatively affects the development of the adolescent brain. Exposure to it at an early age can lead to problems with learning, attention, and decision-making, with long-term consequences for cognitive and behavioral development. Moreover, nicotine is present in higher amounts in an e-cigarette than in a traditional cigarette and causes strong addiction. Adam Kulhánek, is an addiction specialist from the Faculty of Medicine at Charles University and the General University Hospital in Prague.
“Studies show that these sweet, attractive flavors increase the appeal of these products among children. Other contributing factors include attractive design, very popular marketing, a relatively low price, and the fact that they don’t smell like traditional cigarettes, they smell like candy, so when a child uses a sweet flavor, parents or teachers often have no idea the child is using an e-cigarette.”
Experts say that while e-cigarettes were created as a safer alternative for cigarette smokers –or a means of kicking the habit, they are extremely damaging to children and increase the number of people smoking. Roughly one-fifth of e-cigarette users have never smoked tobacco. Minors who form the habit develop a dependence on it very quickly. Adam Kulhánek explains why this group is particularly vunerable.
„There are several reasons. First, the human brain matures until the age of 21 to 25. At this stage, it is highly susceptible to developing addictions to various substances. Nicotine is classified among the substances with the highest potential to cause addiction. A child inhales — or rather absorbs — far higher doses from an e-cigarette than from a traditional cigarette, in which part of the nicotine degrades during burning, and thus is not absorbed into the bloodstream. So whether from nicotine pouches or e-cigarettes, a child will absorb far higher amounts of nicotine. To give you a rough idea : one disposable two-milliliter e-cigarette contains about as much nicotine as two packs of cigarettes.”
Last year, the health committees of both houses of Parliament tasked the Ministry of Health with preparing regulation that would make e-cigarettes less attractive to children. Some experts claim that the ban on candy-flavoured e-cigarettes will not help and more attention should have been paid instead to enforcing the existing ban on the sale of all cigarettes to minors.
So can a ban on candy-flavored e-cigarettes significantly help if the very popular fruit-flavored ones remain on the market? Adam Kulhánek is convinced it will have a positive effect.
“I really think it should. We see this based on data from other countries — such as Canada, the United Kingdom, or Australia — which have much high levels of tobacco control. This measure aims primarily to protect children and adolescents. Adult users will continue to use e-cigarettes, and they will continue to use them in their preferred flavors. But flavors such as cotton candy, strawberry gum, energy drink, or sweet sodas must not be on the market because the product is highly addictive and very appealing to children. So I see this as a very good public-health measure.”
