Are E-Cigarettes Harmful? E-Cigarette Market Oversight Should Be Tightened

The e-cigarette industry is currently developing rapidly, but regulatory oversight still lags behind. At present, the age for purchase should be restricted, access thresholds should be raised, and legislation should be strengthened to regulate the development of the e-cigarette industry.

Recently, the Report on E-Cigarette Industry Regulation (2019), part of the Public Health and Technology Regulation Research Report series completed by Tsinghua University’s Public Health and Technology Regulation Research Group, was officially released. The report shows that in 2017, the number of e-cigarette consumers in China reached 7.4 million. China has become the world’s largest producer of e-cigarette products (accounting for 95% of global output) and the largest exporter (accounting for 90% of global exports), giving it a certain voice and pricing power in the international market. Capital investment has further accelerated this trend. At present, China already has thousands of e-cigarette companies, with new brands emerging almost every day, and some leading e-cigarette companies are now valued at more than US$2 billion.
 

On the other hand, this emerging industry still lacks clear industry standards and regulatory mechanisms. Yan Fei, associate professor in the Department of Sociology at Tsinghua University, believes that for this type of new fast-moving consumer product, which has huge market potential and is still in its early stages, the key to healthy industry development is how the government can regulate it effectively. Judging from the actual products on the market, some e-liquids contain nicotine, while others—such as “atomized coffee”—contain no nicotine, so the regulatory measures for them should differ. “Even nicotine atomization systems can be divided into batteries, atomizing devices, and pods. Batteries and atomizing devices are electronic products, while the pods are the parts that actually contain nicotine, so regulation should be applied separately according to the actual product. In addition, management should cover the entire process, from production to sales to usage scenarios,” Yan Fei said.

Are e-cigarettes harmful to the human body? According to the World Health Organization’s 2019 Global Tobacco Epidemic Report, compared with conventional cigarettes, e-cigarettes may be less harmful. If established smokers switch from cigarettes to well-regulated e-cigarettes, their toxic exposure may be lower, but e-cigarettes are not harmless.

There are reports that legislation on e-cigarettes is currently being advanced. Departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Health Commission, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, and the State Administration for Market Regulation are all involved, and the e-cigarette industry is expected to move toward more standardized development.