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In part two of our Brazil special, Alexandro Lucian walks us through the mayhem of black market vaping sales in Brazil amidst calls for reform of the blanket vaping ban currently in place.

In the U.S. today, the benefits of e-cigarettes to those who smoke cigarettes have been dismissed and marginalized by public health officials. Most Americans have a highly negative view of vaping – until they learn more. Simple facts about the harm-reduction and smoking-cessation benefits of vaping products – particularly flavored vapes, which are two to three times more effective at helping adults quit smoking – shifts sentiment significantly.

Canada's health minister says he'll act quickly to shut down a "loophole" after Health Canada approved the sale of flavoured nicotine pouches with no restrictions on how the product is advertised or sold. "There are very serious questions about what the tobacco industry is doing here and what their intention is. And it would seem that their intention is to addict new young people to nicotine, which is disgusting," Health Minister Mark Holland said Tuesday in response to questions from CBC News. "We want to shut down this loophole."

ZYN pouches are growing in popularity. There are multiple brands of nicotine pouches, but ZYN has recently exploded on platforms like TikTok, with videos on the topic garnering 292.6 million views. The intent of these products is to provide a nicotine source aside from a traditional cigarette, Irfan Rahman, Ph.D, who runs a lab that conducts research on toxicants at the University of Rochester Medicine, told Health. That said, the products have not been sufficiently studied. “There’s no data available,” Rahman said. “If somebody’s saying that, they’re making up data.” 

Digital billboard and bus adverts for e-cigarette brand Elf Bar 'must not appear again in forms complained of' after Advertising Standards Authority rules environmental claims 'misleading'. Elfbar has been rapped by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for making misleading environmental claims in a series of adverts for the e-cigarette brand this summer, after an investigation by watchdog...

France's health ministry unveiled a new plan on Tuesday to tackle cigarette smoking in the country, including bans on smoking in parks and on beaches. From hiking the price of a pack of cigarettes to banning smoking in parks, France has announced a raft of new measures to reduce the number of smokers. As part of a new plan, the government will increase prices to €13 a pack in 2027, ban disposable e-cigarettes, and ban smoking in public spaces such as parks, beaches, forests and other public areas. Their aim is to create a generation "free of tobacco" by 2032.

E-cigarettes or vape products can no longer be advertised, promoted or involved in sponsorship once the Control of Smoking Products For Public Health Bill 2023 comes into force. Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa said the provisions banning the advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco products, which were already in force under existing laws, are now expanded to all products including e-cigarettes, tobacco products, smoking substances and substitute tobacco products. She said that Articles 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the bill also require all importers and manufacturers of tobacco products to register each product produced for the Malaysian market.

Is it possible to create a regulatory environment and a culture that encourages adults who smoke to switch to vape without non-smoking teens taking up vaping as a hobby? The United Kingdom was a world leader in using vaping as a safer alternative for adults who smoke and had low teen vaping rates until 2022 and 2023 when teen vaping rates doubled. One reason may be the widespread availability of attractive-looking disposable vapes at “pocket-money” prices. Does youth vaping matter matter? If so, what can be done about it?

Laos plans to amend and supplement certain provisions of the law on drug prevention and control, with electronic cigarettes to be included in the list of substances and precursors classified as addictive. Speaking at the 9th Lao National Assembly’s 6th session, General Vilay Lakhamphong, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Security, stressed that electronic cigarettes, one of the emerging issues of social concerns, are yet to be listed as prohibited substances. Therefore, in the near future, they will be added to the list of products containing banned addictive substances and precursors.

France is to ban smoking on all beaches, as well as in public parks, forests and near schools, after Emmanuel Macron promised to create “the first tobacco-free generation” by 2032. “From now on, no-smoking areas will be the norm,” said the health minister, Aurélien Rousseau. There are already 7,200 tobacco-free areas in France – including in Nice, on the French Riviera, which was the first to establish a cigarette-free beach in 2012 with the approval of France’s League Against Cancer.