LATEST ALERTS
Many Canadian retailers display e-cigs, but few serve minors
30th June 2015 - News analysis |
Canadian retailers’ attitudes to e-cigarettes differ dramatically across the country, new research suggests.
Health and science
Europeans are vaping more, despite health concerns
29th June 2015 - News analysis |
Awareness and use of e-cigarettes in the EU continues to grow, leading to a 10% success rate amongst users attempting to quit conventional tobacco. But health concerns are increasing too.
More evidence that Europeans are opting for e-cigs over NRT
24th June 2015 - News analysis |
More evidence is emerging to suggest that e-cigarettes are taking market share away from smoking cessation products in Europe.
Singapore’s new e-liquid ban: part of a growing Asian trend?
18th June 2015 - News analysis |
Singapore is to ban e-liquids as part of a wider move to end the importation, sale and use of alternatives to combustible tobacco.
In depth: the regulatory regime for e-cigs in Chile, June 2015
18th June 2015 - Country regulatory reports , Regulatory reports |
Regulatory landscape • Current national regulatory framework • Product categorisation • Age restrictions • Packaging and product restrictions • Public usage • Advertising and marketing restrictions • Case law • Taxation • Enforcement
U.S. vapers favour refillables, smoke, and often feel dumb
11th June 2015 - News analysis |
New data on the habits of vapers in the U.S. appears to back up the widely-held view that tank-type systems are attracting more consumer loyalty and providing a more satisfactory consumer experience than disposable cigalikes.
Welsh and Scottish bills presage a patchwork of UK regulation
10th June 2015 - News analysis |
Wales is likely to become the first part of the United Kingdom to prohibit vaping in workplaces and enclosed public spaces, while milder regulation has been tabled before Scotland’s parliament.
Ethical and practical obstacles stymie e-cig research efforts
9th June 2015 - News analysis |
Research on e-cigarettes and public health is being held back by a lack of agreement on the agenda, ethical issues and practical barriers, a leading British academic in the field has said.
Questions of e-cigarette safety divide vapers from non-users
9th June 2015 - News analysis |
Vapers are much more confident than smokers and the general public about the health risks and benefits of e-cigarettes, according to new French research.
In depth: e-cigarette regulation and policy in Greece, June 2015
5th June 2015 - Country regulatory reports , Regulatory reports |
The background to Greek regulation • National regulatory framework • Age restrictions • Product and packaging restrictions • Public usage • Advertising and marketing restrictions • Taxation • Case law • The missing pieces from the TPD jigsaw • Post-TPD enforcement
In depth: value of e-cigarettes in quitting smoking is unclear
4th June 2015 - Market reports , Topic market reports |
Research on the role of e-cigarettes in smoking cessation remains contradictory and unclear, but there are hints that frequency of vaping and type of product may be important.
UK vaper numbers climbing despite growing health fears
23rd May 2015 - News analysis |
Both smokers and non-smokers in Britain are becoming increasingly concerned by the health effects of e-cigarettes, even as vaping grows in popularity, according to new research.
Risky formaldehyde levels “won’t occur in normal use”
23rd May 2015 - News analysis |
E-cigarette users are unlikely to expose themselves to the dangerous amounts of formaldehyde that the devices can theoretically produce, because these are generated only at high levels of heat that bring about a repellent taste, says new research that partially rebuts findings from earlier this year.
Indonesia reportedly preparing total ban on sales and imports
19th May 2015 - News analysis |
Indonesia appears set to give teeth to its long-standing antipathy toward e-cigarettes with a new ban on sales and imports.
Formaldehyde scientists defend their work, promise follow-up
18th May 2015 - News analysis |
The academics behind a controversial study of formaldehyde levels in e-cigarettes have said that they are not opposed to the products, but are still prepared to defend their work despite criticism that it created unrealistic fears over e-cig safety.
In depth: how common are e-cig fires, and why do they start?
6th May 2015 - Market reports , Topic market reports |
As the use of e-cigarettes has spread, so has the number of fires started by them. But while this has raised some concerns and generated some headlines, these incidents form a small proportion of fires overall, and the risk comes mostly from poor-quality and counterfeit batteries – hazards that could be eliminated with improved regulation and consumer education.
Scottish health bill will require registration of e-cig retailers
5th May 2015 - News analysis |
The Scottish government plans to add a registration process for e-cigarette sellers, as well as a formal ban on sales to under-18s, to its health bill due to be introduced later this year.
Rising level of local regulation worries U.S. vape retailers
5th May 2015 - News analysis |
Vape shops in the U.S. are growing concerned about increasing e-cigarette regulation at state and municipal level.
In depth: Portugal’s developing regulation of e-cigs, May 2015
4th May 2015 - Country regulatory reports , Regulatory reports |
Introduction • Regulatory landscape • Current regulatory framework • The missing pieces from the TPD jigsaw • Conclusions
In depth: more safety worries over e-liquid flavourings
27th April 2015 - Regulatory reports , Topic regulatory reports |
E-cigarette flavours are causing concern again, but this time not over their purported appeal to youth. The latest study to stoke up worries about harmful substances in e-cigs is “Flavour chemicals in electronic cigarette fluids”, another from a group at Portland State University in the U.S.
Filipino legislators propose gentle restrictions on e-cigs
23rd April 2015 - News analysis |
E-cigarette regulation is back on the agenda in the Philippines with a proposal to add novel nicotine delivery products to the country’s relatively easy-going tobacco laws.
FDA’s Zeller: youth figures don’t prove the gateway hypothesis
22nd April 2015 - News analysis |
Newly published data showing a dramatic increase in e-cigarette use among U.S. children does not answer the question of whether e-cigs are a gateway into tobacco smoking, a key Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official said this week.
E-cigs play little part in nicotine addiction among kids: UK study
20th April 2015 - News analysis |
A new study has downplayed concerns about youth e-cigarette use in the UK and even suggested that some minors may be using e-cigs in attempts to give up smoking.
U.S. teens vape more, smoke less: so is it good news or bad?
17th April 2015 - News analysis |
New data from the U.S. National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) is being used in support of two contrasting arguments, for and against e-cigarettes. But could both sides be partly right?
The e-cig world is changing – we’re just not sure when
16th April 2015 - News analysis |
We review the top e-cigarette industry, policy and science stories of recent weeks.
Long-term study to examine health of vapers and dual users
14th April 2015 - News analysis |
The lack of long-term scientific studies into e-cigarettes is a common complaint. But the University of Wisconsin’s Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention (CTRI) is now starting to address that through a multi-year investigation of e-cigs’ health effects, backed by $3.7m in funding from the U.S. government’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Cancer Institute.
FDA science committee divided on “reduced risk” of snus
13th April 2015 - News analysis |
A panel advising the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has rejected attempts by Swedish Match to claim that snus is less harmful than cigarettes – yet some members did accept its assertions of reduced risk.
Welsh schools and employers create their own e-cig policies
9th April 2015 - News analysis |
New surveys by the Welsh government suggest schools and businesses are able to decide e-cigarette policy on their own.
Study of British youth vaping causes outrage, but has flaws
31st March 2015 - News analysis |
A new British study on youth vaping has caused sensationalist headlines with its comparisons of the demographics, tobacco use and alcohol use of 14-to-17-year-olds who reported using or purchasing an e-cigarette.
Hong Kong health agency proposes total e-cig ban
31st March 2015 - News analysis |
Hong Kong could prohibit e-cigarettes altogether following a recommendation from a public health watchdog.
CDC ads are aimed at tobacco, not vaping (will anyone notice?)
31st March 2015 - Marketing & retailing , News analysis |
A new advertising campaign from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has sent shock waves through the e-cigarette sector, with many claiming it demonstrates official bias against the products. But is that a fair reading of the CDC’s ads?
Tobacco-flavour liquids “much lower in toxins than cigarettes”
28th March 2015 - News analysis |
Tobacco-flavoured e-liquid contains significantly lower levels of harmful compounds than tobacco itself, even when the flavouring is produced from cured tobacco leaves, new research suggests.
Medical approval for an e-cig “could be bigger than TPD”
27th March 2015 - News analysis |
Approval of an e-cigarette by a medical licensing body could have even more impact on the sector than the much-discussed EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) implementation, according to Nerudia, a consultancy and nicotine science company.
E-cigarette ads could increase smokers’ desire for tobacco
26th March 2015 - Marketing & retailing , News analysis |
Vaping in TV commercials may increase smokers’ urge to reach for a cigarette and decrease optimism among those that quit tobacco, a new study from the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg School for Communication suggests.
“Gateway effect” isn’t simple; drink and drugs involved too
23rd March 2015 - News analysis |
Of all the current concerns about the introduction of e-cigarettes, one that looms large is whether they can be a gateway to conventional smoking and to misuse of other substances such as marijuana. New research from the U.S. aims to cast some light on that, but the issue is contentious.
British MPs told to avoid excessive caution on e-cigs
20th March 2015 - News analysis |
Health experts have called on the UK government to support e-cigs through light-touch regulation.
If it’s Saturday, this must be Shenzhen (and an e-cig expo)
19th March 2015 - News analysis |
While delegates to this week’s World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Abu Dhabi presumably must decide which of the title’s categories e-cigarettes fall into, those who’ve missed it have another choice to make: just how many of the plethora of e-cig-related events in upcoming months they should attend. The conference in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is quickly followed » Continue Reading.
Consumers who see e-cig ads more likely to trust products
17th March 2015 - Marketing & retailing , News analysis |
TV and radio advertising has a strong effect on consumers’ perceptions of e-cigarette safety, new research suggests.
Canadian law-makers favour bespoke regime for e-cigs
16th March 2015 - News analysis |
Canada is taking the first steps toward much-desired federal regulation of e-cigarettes with the release of a parliamentary committee report making detailed recommendations on the shape of national law.
Swedish court upholds claim that e-cigs are medical devices
12th March 2015 - News analysis |
E-cigarettes containing nicotine are medical products and must be licensed by the regulator, a Swedish appeals court has ruled.
E-cigs are eating away at NRT sales in the UK, says Mintel
11th March 2015 - News analysis |
E-cigarettes continue to take sales from nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) products in the UK, according to new data.
Ads, labels and smoking habits all affect opinions on e-cigs
10th March 2015 - News analysis |
Consumers’ attitudes to e-cigarettes and tobacco appear to be influenced by factors as diverse as warning labels, TV ads, individual smoking habits and even levels of numeracy, according to recent research.
Sunshine and showers: the top e-cigarette stories in review
10th March 2015 - News analysis |
As the change of seasons edged closer over February and early March, headlines in the e-cigarette sector were a sometimes confusing mix of storm clouds and sunshine.
While DC regulators ponder, states take the initiative
10th March 2015 - News analysis |
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is this week again hoping to gather more insight on e-cigarettes as it ponders the final form of its deeming regulations.
FDA’s departing commissioner praised, censured on e-cigs
10th March 2015 - News analysis |
In her final days as head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Margaret Hamburg is receiving accolades from Republicans and Democrats alike on her six years in what many call one of the toughest jobs in government.
In depth: conflicting statistics beset debate on youth vaping
2nd March 2015 - Regulatory reports , Topic regulatory reports |
A new study is the first to cautiously find no link between e-cigarette use in U.S. middle- and high-school students and harm reduction.
U.S. public health authorities urged to be cautious over e-cigs
27th February 2015 - News analysis |
Regulators should err on the side of caution when deciding e-cigarette regulations concerning children and pregnant women, U.S. public-health officials have been told.
Young French consumers vape much more than their elders
24th February 2015 - News analysis |
Vaping in France is largely an activity of younger people, according to new figures from government health researchers.
E-cigs can be a force for good, says doctor who crafted FCTC
23rd February 2015 - News analysis |
One of the main architects of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) has expressed his strong support for e-cigarettes, starkly separating himself from the position adopted by the FCTC at its Moscow summit last year.
Medical supporters of e-cigs rally for social media campaign
18th February 2015 - Marketing & retailing , News analysis |
A new initiative seeking to unite scientific and medical supporters of e-cigarettes is planning a “thunderclap” through social media this Thursday.
