Vaping packaging, flavours concern
Watermelon panacea, cinnamon roll, milk and cookies and sour worms.
The vaping industry is downplaying concerns children will drink nicotine ‘‘juice’’, drawn to its bright packaging and appealing flavours.
The National Poisons Centre is bracing for an increase in calls over the juices which, unlike the cigarettes they increasingly replace, are not required to have plain packaging. However, sellers say the industry’s self-regulation is enough to allay concerns.
The Ministry of Health says plans to develop voluntary standards for vaping products are under way.
Dr Adam Pomerleau, director of the Dunedin-based National Poisons Centre, said while researchers knew what was in cigarettes, the same could not always be said for their R18 vaping counterparts, which are legal to buy under the Smoke-free Environments Act. That unknown, coupled with the bright juice and enticing packaging, was concerning. ‘‘The biggest risk would be for people who ingest it.’’
The centre receives about 25,000 inquiries each year, a handful of which involved children exposed to vaping products. He was concerned those numbers would increase as vaping, particularly nicotine juice, became more popular. ‘‘The amount of nicotine that is going to be potentially in these products can be harmful,’’ Pomerleau said.
QJ Satchell, of the New Zealand Vaping Alliance, said the vaping market self-regulated. His own products listed nicotine juice as an R18 product and included poison information, batch and date details and ingredients.
Pomerleau said he would like the products to be sold in child-proof containers, list contents and with labels to include medical advice.
Experiences in other countries showed children who drank the juice were often hospitalised, with some requiring intensive care.
Satchell said the industry was about to release a new restricted flow bottle. ‘‘If a child wants to get in there because it smells nice . . . they would get no more than a couple of drops in their mouth.’’
His companies, which include NZ Vapor, made their juices in New Zealand and did not used Chinesemade flavourings. ‘‘That is why regulation is imperative to stop that bathroom/ bathtub mixer from putting stuff together.’’
Pomerleau said the National Poisons Centre was often at the forefront of spotting public health trends, and each new year they experienced a spike in calls. That came after people switched from cigarettes to nicotine replacement therapies, such as gum. He recalled one case where a child ate 15 pieces of the gum.
Associate Health Minister Jenny Salesa referred comment on vaping products to the Ministry of Health.
A spokeswoman said a technical expert advisory group on electronic cigarette product safety would look at technical aspects of the development of the regulatory scheme, such as appropriate minimum quality and safety standards, including manufacturing, ingredients, labelling and packaging. That work was likely to progress through Parliament late this year.