I was interested to read your report on the British Medical Association recommending that vapes should only be available over the counter (Vapes should be sold behind the counter like cigarettes, says BMA, 28 August). It should go further and recommend, as has happened in Australia, that vapes should only be available on prescription. It must not be forgotten that the reason vapes were introduced was to wean tobacco smokers from their habit. It was recognised that the products of tobacco combustion were the main cause of lung cancer.
However, this did nothing for their addiction to nicotine, which was the main reason why they smoked. Nicotine is probably the most addictive chemical known to mankind, far more so even than heroin. It affects the nervous system, and produces addiction. It also affects the cardiovascular system, increasing the risk of a heart attack, and the release of hormones.
Thus all vapes that contain nicotine are addictive, and people who use vapes should be regarded as drug addicts. What is alarming is that younger and younger children are vaping, thus becoming addicted to nicotine at a much earlier age, with unknown future consequences.
Also alarming is that the propellant that is vaporised contains a number of chemicals, such as propylene glycol, and flavourings. One has no idea what happens to these chemicals when heated to about 200C during vaporisation, and what is the long-term effect of these on the lungs and other organs after, say, 40 years. So vapes should only be available on prescription, and doctors should do all they can to wean their patients off them.
Prof Anthony Milton
Emeritus professor of pharmacology, University of Aberdeen
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