More shifting to electronic cigarettes, vape
More people are using electronic cigarettes and vaping, resulting in a ''changing landscape'', a group said Monday.
In an interview, Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Philippines Executive Director Dr. Maricar Limpin said ''we can see some kind of shifting from the traditional cigarette to the electronic smoking devices." she added.
The 2021 Global Adult Tobacco Survey said the overall use of tobacco in the Philippines went down from 23.8 percent in 2015 to 19.5 percent in 2021.
The 2019 Global Youth Tobacco Survey show an increasing trend of vape use from 11.7 percent in 2015 to 24.6 percent in 2019.
Limpin, in a message to the Daily Manila Shimbun, said with the rapid increase in vape users ''we can expect another epidemic on top of the tobacco epidemic- that is vaping epidemic.''
''With the twin epidemics, we expect increase in chronic respiratory diseases,'' she added. DMS
