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A boom in sales of disposable vapes has led to millions ending up in landfill, with users throwing away around two every second in the UK, despite containing valuable lithium, the metal on which much of the high-tech economy depends, a joint investigation by Sky News and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has found.
Disposable vapes are the fastest-growing alternative to smoking in the UK, overtaking other types of refillable and reusable vapes for the first time this year. Mark Miodownik, professor of materials and society at University College London pointed to environmental harms of the waste. Binned disposable vapes are estimated to account for around 10 tonnes of valuable lithium being sent to landfill each year - enough to make batteries for 1,200 electric cars. Miodownik said: "We can't be throwing these materials away, it really is madness in a climate emergency [...] It's in your laptop, it's in your mobile phone, it's in electric cars. This is the material that we are absolutely relying on to shift away from fossil fuels and address climate issues."
Scott Butler, executive director of Material Focus drew attention to more mindful consumer use, as the investigation revealed that just over half of users reported throwing their vapes in the bin when it runs out, rather than putting them in a waste electricals recycling bin or returning them to the retailer.
The problem of electrical and electronic waste not being recycled is not exclusive to disposable vapes, but the investigation suggests the disposable vape producers may not even be meeting the minimum obligations to recycle their products. The country's two leading disposable vape brands are Elf Bar and Geek Bar. Producers or importers of products classed as waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in the UK have certain responsibilities under the regulations to ensure they are recycled, including placing themselves on a register. No evidence of the manufacturer or importer of Geek Bar or Elf Bar being on the WEEE register was found in the investigation. Neither of them responded to requests for comment. The Environment Agency, which is responsible for enforcing the regulations, said that “Any business identified as failing to comply with these regulations [WEEE] will be subject to an appropriate enforcement response."
The Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is conducting a review of how to improve the collection and recycling of what it defines as "small mixed waste, electric and electronic equipment" later this year.
Source: Sky News, 15 July 2022
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The College of Medicine’s Beyond Pills campaign, launched in June 2022, highlights the importance of social prescribing that can lead to better outcomes, fewer side effects, improved mental, physical and social health, and major savings to the NHS, writes Dr Michael Dixon and Professor Sir Sam Everington.
The recent National Overprescribing Review commissioned by the government estimated that at least 10% of circa 1.11 billion prescriptions dispensed in England are unnecessary. While they can do good, drugs can also cause harm to patients, affecting metabolism and quality of life.
Social prescribing generally involves the patient being referred to a link worker – a non-clinical professional who takes time with the patient to co-design a social intervention to address their specific issues. Interventions range widely from encouragement to exercise or improve nutrition, join an arts group or start gardening to advice on welfare benefits, housing or occupational choices. Support is principally provided by voluntary community organisations.
Social prescribing is embedded in the NHS long-term plan and NHS England Personalised Care Programme, which empowers people to participate actively in their own health and care. It directly aligns with the Fuller Report, which calls for “a significant cultural shift towards a more psychosocial model of care that takes a more holistic approach to supporting the health and wellbeing of a community”, in order to overcome the genuine and growing discontent with primary care – both from the public who use it and the professionals who work within it.
Source: HSJ, 13 July 2022
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Bromsgrove company Ecl-ips has become one of the first in the UK to offer a detection device that could help schools wanting to tackle vaping. Similar devices have been used in US schools.
Source: Bromsgrove Standard, 14 July 2022
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Depression is positively associated with the use of tobacco and nicotine products, according to study findings published in Psychiatry Research Communications.
This study analysed data taken from the fall semester cohort of the 2020 Healthy Minds Study, with a ample size of 2115. Participants reported use of e-cigarettes exclusively, cigarettes exclusively, and dual use of these products. Symptoms of depression were measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Answers to Patient Health Questionnaire-9 were summed up and measured on a scale of 0 to 27, with scores greater than 5 representing probable depression. The study also measured perceptions of social norms of tobacco and nicotine use and perceptions of risks associated with such products.
The study authors said that with an increased understanding of psychosocial and mental health-related factors, the findings may be used “to guide future efforts to develop and test [dual use] interventions, which may need to include components that address depression, social norms, and harm perceptions”.
Source: Psychiatry Advisor, 14 July 2022
Editorial note: Both the article and the original study refer to e-cigarettes as a ‘tobacco product’.
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Yesterday (14 July), Peers debated the Business and Planning Act 2020 (Pavement Licences) (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2022. The regulations will extend the pavement licence conditions in the Business and Planning Act 2020 from 30 September 2022 for another year. Under the extension the requirement will still be to provide only ‘reasonable provision’ for smokefree seating. The regulations will cover the interim period before pavement licences are made permanent in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill.
Lord Young of Cookham and Baroness Northover:
• Set out the case for requiring all pavement licences to be 100% smokefree, as recommended in the Khan Review: making smoking obsolete
• Highlighted the majority support for smokefree pavement licences in the Lords
• Called on the Government to consult with DHSC when developing guidance for the regulations
• Called on the Government to include a requirement for 100% smokefree pavement licences in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill and confirmed that Peers would table an amendment to do this if the Government did not
Responding for the Government, Baroness Bloomfield of Hinton Waldrist said:
• The Government are working with the Department of Health on the pavement licencing guidance
• The Government are carefully considering the 15 recommendations set out in the Javed Khan independent review to support the Government’s ambition for England to be smoke-free by 2030
• “I have heard loud and clear your Lordships’ request that we consider amending the LUR Bill. All I can promise to do is to take those concerns straight back to the department; it is beyond my pay grade to make any such undertaking from this Dispatch Box.”
Source: Hansard, 14 July 2022
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A coalition of 47 organisations and charities, have written to challenge the UK Government to be bold on health by putting the prevention agenda front and centre of the levelling up mission. They write that by investing in prevention and introducing much-needed population-wide policy measures, the White Paper “could lay the foundation for a fairer, prosperous, healthier nation”. Signatories of this letter include Cancer Research UK, The Royal Society for Public Health, Action on Smoking and Health, British Heart Foundation, Asthma + Lung UK and the Health Foundation.
The statement continues that if the UK Government are serious about tackling health inequalities and reducing preventable risk factors it must introduce bold population level interventions less reliant on individual resource, and instead aim to alter the environments in which people live. They highlight the recent independent review on smoking by Dr Javed Khan, which provides a clear roadmap for the Government to implement.
To read the consensus statement, follow through to the Royal Society of Public Health’s website, where the letter has been published.
See also: Khan review - Making Smoking Obsolete
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The Core20PLUS5 framework has been updated to include the contribution smoking cessation can make to improving outcomes, through impact on all five of the key clinical areas.
The Core20PLUS5 is a national NHS England and NHS Improvement approach to support the reduction of health inequalities at both national and system level, targeting the most deprived 20% plus population groups that may include people that are homeless, those with protected characteristics and various socially excluded groups. The approach identifies ‘5’ focus clinical areas requiring accelerated improvement.
This infographic can be accessed through the NHSE’s website here.
For more information on the contribution of smoking in health inequalities see ASH’s tailored brief’s for ICS: https://smokefreeaction.org.uk/icsbriefings/
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Independent think tank, We are New Local, dedicated to empowering community-based initiatives, has published a report and created a podcast setting out the need for a community-powered NHS to enable a shift towards a prevention approach. We are New Local’s Grace Pollard and Adam Lent also look at how to make this happen in practice, sharing three key principles: community participation in decision-making, mobilising community assets and growing a community-focused organisational culture.
Find the report and listen to the accompanying podcast here.
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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.
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