Canada’s Nicotine Bill to Take Effect on July 8
Until a few years ago, Canada appeared to be on the right track in tobacco harm reduction and fully supported vaping products as tools for smoking cessation and reducing cigarette use. Unfortunately, that changed after a paper published in BMJ concluded t
Until a few years ago, Canada was on the right track in tobacco harm reduction and fully supported the use of vaping products as tools for smoking cessation and smoking reduction. Sadly, all of that changed when a paper published in the BMJ concluded that vaping among Canadian youth was followed by an increase in smoking.
Public health consultant and former director of Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), Clive Bates, pointed out at the time that the figures in the BMJ paper were incorrect. Sure enough, nearly a year later, the journal published a correction. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done, and the study’s data had caused considerable alarm, leading to policy changes.
In December 2020, Health Canada proposed a nicotine cap of 20 mg/ml for all vaping products. Based on the BMJ study, Health Canada “determined that the availability of vaping products with high nicotine concentrations on the Canadian market since 2018 has been one of the key factors contributing to the rise in youth vaping.”
The new restriction will take effect tomorrow (July 8) and will be extended to all retailers on July 23. The measure also includes a regulation prohibiting Canadian manufacturers from exporting products with nicotine concentrations exceeding 66 mg/ml.
ECigIntelligence quoted federal health minister Patty Hajdu as saying that the nicotine cap is part of the government’s effort to prevent youth vaping. “We are taking this action because we know nicotine has particular effects on young people’s brain development, memory, and attention.”
How does the nicotine cap affect users?
However, data from Europe shows that after the EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) imposed a nicotine cap, some experienced smokers who had already switched to vaping struggled with the lower dosage. As a result, many former smokers started smoking again or turned to the black market to buy the products they preferred.
Related Articles
Vaping News
Ahead of a Nationwide Ban, Hundreds of Russian Retailers Voluntarily Stop Selling Vapes
2026-04-16
Vaping News
Illegal Vape Brands Try to Evade FDA Scrutiny by Posing as “Made in the USA”
2026-04-08
Vaping News
Jordan’s New Tobacco Control Rules: Waterpipe Tobacco Market Set for Major Changes
2026-03-17