Each week, two readers discuss a hot topic in a parliamentary-style debate that doesn’t necessarily reflect their personal viewpoints.
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For: Charis Chan, 14, Malvern College Hong Kong
We are all aware that smoking cigarettes hurts our health. Though some believe e-cigarettes are slightly better, it’s simply not true, and they can negatively impact us as well. Because of this, I think that Hong Kong should go through with its proposal to ban e-cigarettes.
E-cigarettes consist of flavouring, nicotine, and other chemicals. Nicotine makes your brain produce a calming, enjoyable sensation that makes quitting difficult. However, using tobacco increases your chances of lung disease, cancer, stroke, heart attack, and other illnesses.
Vaping exposes us to numerous health risks. According to the Cleveland Clinic in the US, “The particles you inhale while vaping can cause inflammation and irritation in your lungs. This can lead to lung damage like scarring and narrowing of the tubes that bring air in and out of your lungs.”
The clinic added that it could also cause “breathing problems, organ damage, addiction and other conditions.”
In short, vaping has similar consequences to smoking. In rare cases, malfunctioning vaping devices might even explode, causing severe injuries, burns, or even death in some extreme situations.
Additionally, since e-cigarettes contain batteries and plastic, they can be challenging to recycle and harmful to the environment.
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According to the US PIRG Educational Fund, “Due to the nicotine e-liquid used in these products, vape waste can’t be recycled with other plastics because the EPA defines the substance as an acute hazardous waste. Disposable vapes can’t be reused, they can’t be recycled properly, and they can’t legally be thrown in the trash.”
It was also reported on the same website that “the disposable vapes sold in a year would stretch for 7,000 miles (around 11,265km) – long enough to span the continental US twice”.
If vaping becomes popular among teens, social acceptance might normalise it, which in turn would encourage more young people to vape and create more health problems for this young generation.
Hong Kong should proceed with the proposal to ban e-cigarettes due to their adverse health, environmental, societal, and financial impacts.
Against: Athan Ng Tsun-hin, 12, Australian International School Hong Kong
Smoking is a huge problem worldwide and has the potential to cause issues like heart disease, stroke and lung cancer. While vaping may seem just as big an issue, there are multiple reasons why Hong Kong shouldn’t ban e-cigarettes.
While smoking and vaping are both dangerous to our health, e-cigarettes offer options with lower nicotine, whereas regular cigarettes cannot be modified. Thus, perhaps Hong Kong should consider banning traditional cigarettes instead of e-cigarettes.
E-cigarettes can also be a tool to help cigarette smokers quit. Banning e-cigarettes will limit access to a smoking cessation aid that enables people to reduce the amount of nicotine they consume and, in turn, decrease the number of people who quit smoking.
Another reason we shouldn’t ban e-cigarettes is that people may simply switch to traditional cigarettes. They could experience stronger nicotine cravings if their preferred products are forbidden. For those who switched to vapes in an attempt to quit smoking, this could cause them to backslide in their journey because they don’t have a way to level down the amount of nicotine they consume slowly.
Furthermore, banning e-cigarettes would restrict the freedom adults have to make their own choices regarding their habits. I believe that adults should have the right to decide whether to use e-cigarettes as long as they are informed about the potential risks.
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Some argue that e-cigarettes should be banned because teenagers could be tempted to try them. However, we should focus on education instead of a blanket ban.
Educating young people about the differences between e-cigarettes and cigarettes and their potential health consequences is a more effective solution.
Hong Kong already banned the import, manufacture, and sale of e-cigarettes about two years ago. The current government proposal would also ban the personal use of these products.
However, banning e-cigarettes is not the correct solution. Not only does it restrict people’s freedoms, but it creates a more significant obstacle for cigarette smokers trying to quit. Banning these products would do more harm than good.
