A MAJORITY (87.9%) of surveyed vape users support the introduction of vape regulations that are different from conventional cigarettes, a poll conducted by a vape business owner recently found.
The opinion poll which was conducted among businessman Adrian Lo’s social media pages on various topics related to vape regulations also saw 85.5% of users polled supporting the Government’s move to regulate the vape industry.
“As a consumer and a business owner, I am extremely concerned with the move by the Health Ministry (MOH) to label tobacco and vape as the same products and to regulate both products in the same way,” said Lo.
“Regulations for vape products must be different from conventional tobacco as both products are not the same.”
According to Lo, various international reports have found vape to be less harmful and is a viable alternative to quit smoking while multiple studies have confirmed that tobacco kills more than 8 million people each year.
“Therefore, it is wrong to regulate both products the same way,” he added.
As part of the survey which had garnered more than 1,633 respondents in two weeks, vape users are asked about the kind of regulations that they hope will be introduced for the industry.
The top three regulations that Malaysian vapers hope to see are for vape products to be prohibited from being sold to underaged Malaysians; for vape products to be sold in all premises with relevant controls in place; and for vape products to be sold online with relevant controls in place.
On nicotine level in vape liquids, majority of the respondents (87.4%) also agreed that there must be a limit to nicotine in vape liquids and that nicotine levels in vape liquids between 50mg-60mg received the highest support from vapers at 69.3%.
Malaysian vapers further pointed out that if nicotine levels in vape liquids are capped at a lower level:
- 40% said they will go back to using traditional cigarettes;
- 3% said that they will turn to unregulated products;
- 5% will add nicotine into their vape liquids; and
- 1% will quit using vape products.
Lo went on to note that all the findings from the survey are consistent with his experience from being in the industry.
“For example, we know that on average, vape consumers purchase vape liquids with 50mg-60mg nicotine,” he explained.
“The survey showed that respondents are in agreement with this level of nicotine, and if regulations do not take into consideration the need of vapers, then most of them will revert back to smoking or turn to unregulated products.
“This is a clear indication that regulations must mirror the need of consumers or otherwise any efforts to legalise the industry will be futile.”
Commenting on MOH’s proposal to ban access to vape products for anyone born after 2005, Lo expressed doubts that the move would be effective.
“Banning access to vape products will not mean that these products will no longer be available to those born after 2005,” he opined.
“It will simply mean that these group of users will be forced to buy from dubious sources and worst case, obtain unregulated vape products that do not adhere to any safety standards.
“This can be even more dangerous, as users will be consuming products with unknown substances. Not to mention also enforcement will be very challenging.”
Lo added that it is also very difficult to comprehend the intent of such ruling as “anyone above the age of 18 are able to vote and drive a vehicle but cannot have access to products that are deemed less harmful compared to cigarettes”.
“If MOH’s goal is to create a smoke-free nation, then the right move is for vape products to be regulated and positioned as alternatives that can help smokers quit,” he remarked. – April 7, 2022
