The ad directs the viewer to this website
https://smokefree.org.nz/smokefree-in-action/breakfree-to-smokefree
then 'learn about vaping' shows the question and answer in the photograph above, taken of the website.
It simply advises that vaping gives you nicotine without the toxins, and that is the only sentence under the question 'How is vaping different than smoking?' (sic)
The Ministry of Health supports this.
Where are the warnings?!
'Without the toxins' in burning tobacco could reasonably be understood as vaping does not have any toxins.
Who wrote this?
Is this recommended by the lead vape researcher at the Dept of Public Health, Janet Hoek, who refers to problems of vaping but supports specialty vape shops? The Dept of Public Health advises the government on public health issues. Ms Hoek has an MA, a business diploma and was a lecturer at Otago Uni in marketing, which may explain the papers mentioned in a previous update about why Labour is supporting vaping.
She is not an authority on respiratory health. Her team should be taking advice from those who are. It is likely that she has been heavily persuaded by the vape industry that attractive SVRs (specialist vape retail stores) throughout communities are necessary to help tobacco smokers get over their addiction, in spite of the vape epidemic and serious health hazards!
As mentioned previously NZ govt, like the UK which has a terrible child vaping problem, refers to selected outdated papers emphasising the tobacco to vape switch with a highly irresponsible omission or negligible mention of harm. This ad and the website are a clear, disturbing demonstration of this.
Whatever the background to this tv ad and the website short message it is 1. presented by Te Whatu Ora so has for lay people the credibility of the Ministry of Health 2. it is strongly advocating vaping 3. it is not stating risks and in fact implies vaping does not have toxins
This is again misleading the public and especially youth indicating that vaping is harmless.
Given the serious risks, and that others in the Ministry of Health and in fact in the Dept of Public Health would know better, means that once again the public are not being advocated for by those in government whose primary job that is. It is dangerous, and tragic given the young lives being put at risk.
As an online letter yesterday to the Herald stated, referring to vaping, 'an obvious health tsunami is about to emerge' in our departments of oral, respiratory and general medicine. It also said National should in their first 100 days make vapes prescription only.