Dramatic? Yes. Justified? Yes, absolutely.

The lovely 'breathing healthy air' image of a previous update would be my preferred one. However this is how parents of addicted children, school principals, clinicians, vape and nicotine addicts trying to give up, must feel when addressing the fact that the vape epidemic isn't even on the government's 100 day list.

The aerosol of vapes is toxic! See much mentioned link to what is in the aerosol. 

See all the lung.org material etc etc

Compare the much mentioned link to vape risks as suppied by the US govt and reference to just one of the hazards, nicotine, with the messaging about nicotine in the NZ govt advice. Under vaping risks, the latter denies risk for most smokers (sic). This comment is erroneous for many reasons.

Vapes are displayed and sold everywhere, risks are generally not mentioned and not known, and e-cigarettes are a major money earner in our country for the tobacco/vape industry, but also for the government which is making money off every licence and every 'deal' of this hazardous product. The other devastating costs are not factored in. 

The government says they 'support the (previous) government's measures to reduce the number of young people taking up vaping'. The Labour government amendment allows all retailers to obtain licences to display and sell vapes, powerfully supports use of vapes to the extent of extreme understatement of risks by the Ministry of Health!, has no back-up vape quitting programmes, no requirement for plain packaging with health risks clearly stated.

This is a product considered so hazardous to health the American Cancer Society advises against its use even to switch from tobacco smoking, the major cause of lung cancer and a cause of much serious other lung pathology and cardiovascular disease.

So, sadly, this is the appropriate image for now, until the new government stops shelving this one. 

(I have endeavoured to spread the word through various measures. Please do what you can. I know some of you do much more than me in campaigning on this, and thank you.)

(The picture of 'The Scream' by Edvard Munch is from the Inka Arthouse)