Changes to Smoke-Free Ontario Act

Thursday, 2 July 2020 16:41

Photo courtesy of Flickr https://vaping360.com/

The Province of Ontario has officially amended the Smoke-free Ontario act in an effort to stop kids from vaping.

OXFORD COUNTY - The Province of Ontario has officially amended the Smoke-free Ontario act in an effort to stop kids from vaping.

The amendments strengthen the restrictions on youth access to flavoured and high nicotine vapour products to protect youth under 19 years of age from the harms associated with vaping.

The amendments respond to parental, public, and health stakeholder’s concerns about the increase in youth vaping and include:

- Restricting the sale of flavoured vapour products to specialty vape stores (SVS) and licensed cannabis retail stores. Other retail stores can only sell tobacco, menthol, and mint flavoured vapour products;

- Restricting the sale of vapour products with high nicotine concentrations (greater than 20 mg/ml) to SVS;

- SVS will no longer be permitted to have indoor displays and promotions that are visible from outside their stores.

Vape products have more concentrations of nicotine per puff than the older types of e-cigarettes and even tobacco cigarettes. Nicotine is a highly addictive substance that can have adverse effects on the developing brain.

Not only do vapour products put youth and non-tobacco users at risk of nicotine dependence of which can lead to the use of traditional cigarettes, but usage of these products also threatens to undermine the success of existing tobacco control measures under the Smoke-free Ontario Act and new Smoke-free Ontario Act, 2017.

Research has shown that flavours are appealing to kids and is one of the reasons teens are drawn to vaping. This had led to more and more young people using e-cigarettes locally and across the country.

The new regulations will restrict places youth are able to access from selling flavoured vapour products and those with high nicotine concentrations.

Medical Officer of Health Dr. Joyce Lock says vape pens and e-cigarettes are bad for your health.

“There is substantial evidence that e-cigarettes have short-term negative health effects and that e-cigarette aerosol contains many harmful chemicals and that nicotine itself alters the adolescent brain. Southwestern Public Health supports the recent amendments to the Smokefree Ontario Act, 2017 and will be enforcing these changes within the local community.”

Photo courtesy of Flickr and https://vaping360.com/