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UK Vaping Industry Launches First Awareness Month
Britain’s vaping sector has announced the launch of its first ever awareness and education campaign, due to kick off in April and last for the month. Called VApril, a combination of “vaping” and “April”, the event is designed to encourage the country’s smokers to take up vaping and become healthier as a result.
The campaign, organised by the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), which represents many of Britain’s top vaping manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers, will be fronted by popular British medic Dr Christian Jessen — star of TV programs such as Embarrassing Bodies and Supersize vs Superskinny. The campaign comes on the back of advice from top UK health authorities in recent months that urges people who smoke to consider using e-cigarettes instead.
Smoking kills around 100,000 people in Britain each year, and while there are still some 9 million people who smoke in the multi-nation country comprising England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, rates are dropping. The health authorities and the vaping industry are hoping those numbers fall even further, as many people find that using e-cigarettes is one of the most effective ways to finally kick the habit.
Vaping: Just What the Doctor Ordered
“I’m delighted to be joining forces with the UK Vaping Industry Association to launch VApril, the UK’s first ever vaping education and awareness campaign. I personally believe vaping has overwhelming potential to help smokers break their habit, and this is important because stopping smoking is the single most significant step that people can make to improve their health,” said Dr Jessen.
VApril is taking three approaches to its campaign: UK-wide workshops, a user-friendly and free guide to vaping, and sharing vaping and quit-smoking experiences on social media. Details of all these are available at the VApril website, where the free guide can also be downloaded. UKVIA director John Dunne said it was an important time in the battle against cigarettes and related diseases, as well as for the UK and wider vaping sector.
“This will be the largest campaign ever run by the vaping industry and reflects how far the sector has come in a relatively short period of time,” he said. “The challenge for the industry, government and the public health community is to get across the message that e-cigarettes are a very small risk compared to smoking and that nearly 3 million smokers are now vaping, with a significant number having switched over altogether. VApril aims to be the starting point for more smokers to quit their habit.”
Medical Pillars of Support
Unlike in the United States and elsewhere, Britain is at the forefront of recommending that people hooked on cigarettes start using e-cigarettes instead. This is because, going on a raft of in-depth studies, vaping presents almost none of the risks to human health that using vape gear does. There are none of the thousands of toxic chemicals released from burning tobacco, for example, at least 70 of which are known to be carcinogenic.
Nicotine is what smokers are after, as everyone knows, and that’s what e-cigarettes may contain (some e-liquids don’t have any, just various fruity flavours), and this substance is not especially harmful to human health. So, it makes sense that anyone wanting to avoid developing an array of diseases caused by cigarette smoke, but still wanting their nicotine hit, should instead vape.
VApril will surely open more smokers’ eyes to a real and effective way to get off cigarettes. That’s good news for everyone, including the many who inhale secondhand smoke and end up dying from it. Will other countries, including the United States, latch on to the growing vaping trend and hold their own awareness month? It might well be in everyone’s interests if they do.
