Mayo lobbyist says vaping is healthy alternative to smoking
SMOKING claims the lives of almost 7,000 people in Ireland annually, according to the Mayo based administrator of the Irish Vape Vendors Association (IVVA).
That's virtually the population of one of the region's larger towns such as Ballina or Castlebar, says Gillian Golden who is originally from Sligo but now lives in Bangor Erris.
Ms Golden, a former cigarette smoker who switched some time ago to e-cigarettes, is now a passionate advocate of the vaping industry.
As administrator of the IVVA, she has railed strongly against suggestions the Government should introduce an e-cigarette liquid levy.
In a letter to the Irish Times last week she wrote: “We would like to point out to the government's own figures that state that in Ireland 19 people per day died from a smoking related disease with each smoking-related hospital admission costing an average of only €7,700.
“E-cigarettes present an opportunity to improve the health of smokers by displacing their habit for something which presents just a tiny fraction of the harm.
“However, there is a risk that a tobacco-like tax on these products creates the false view that there is no equal harm, and so to smokers, it makes no difference if they continue to smoke or switch to vaping.
“There is also the risk of current smokers, who would otherwise have switched (especially those on lower incomes) deciding not to do so on cost grounds.
“If the government wishes to reduce the number of people who die from smoking, it should be doing everything in its power to protect the attractiveness of these products to current smokers and also promoting their use through policy change and public awareness campaigns of their relative risk.
“The UK, England in particular, has taken a far more pragmatic approach in this regard.
“Figures by Professor Robert West of University College, London, estimate that vaping has created an extra 20,000 ex-smokers there each year, who wouldn't otherwise have stopped smoking by any other means.”
Speaking on a personal level, Ms. Golden told The Connaught Telegraph she used to smoke up to 80 cigarettes a week before trying an e-cigarette and is now “absolutely convinced” of the health benefits of vaping compared to the use of tobacco products.