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| Year : 2019 | Volume
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| Issue : 5 | Page : 651 |
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| Electronic cigarettes and its ban in India |
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SM Balaji
Executive Editor, Indian Journal of Dental Research, Director and Consultant Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Balaji Dental and Craniofacial Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Click here for correspondence address and email
| Date of Submission | 04-Dec-2019 |
| Date of Acceptance | 06-Dec-2019 |
| Date of Web Publication | 18-Dec-2019 |
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How to cite this article:
Balaji S M. Electronic cigarettes and its ban in India. Indian J Dent Res 2019;30:651 |
The proposal to ban the electronic cigarettes or electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) has been gaining momentum and, recently, the union Government of India is planning a Pan-India ban, first by an executive order in September 2019 and later at the Indian Parliament in December 2019. The bill seeks to prohibit the production, trade, transport, storage, and advertisement of any forms of the ENDS in India but has not commented or regulated on the use of the ENDS. Under the act, the first time offenders could be punished with a year's imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 1,00,000 that increases to three years' imprisonment and a Rs. 5,00,000 fine for repeat offence. The government believes that over the time, the ENDS refill would not be legally available, controlling the epidemic of ENDS use, particularly among the Indian youth and adolescences.[1]
Tobacco in any form is harmful and in oral cavity causes a spectrum of diseases, disorders, and states. It also interferes with healing, and alters the course of the dental treatment and natural history of dental diseases.[2] Since its introduction and early reports, ENDS was promoted as a legitimate tobacco/nicotine cessation aid, while it was also perceived as a new gateway to later tobacco addiction.[3] There has been emerging evidence of outbreak of ENDS-related respiratory/Lung illness with about 1300 cases and 26 deaths in US,[4] while other reports highlight reduction in diseases by the use of ENDS instead of traditional forms of tobacco use.[5]
As a dentist, tobacco and nicotine, in any forms, predispose to poor oral health. The effect of ENDS on oral health has been adequately reported.[6] There is no second thought on the immediate need for reduction and elimination of tobacco use in India. But banning ENDS or imposing restriction or sin tax on other tobacco products would not help to eliminate the burden of tobacco associated diseases. It requires multi-pronged approach, and strong determination from all sections of stakeholders. The fact that the Government of India is bringing in proactive mechanism to control tobacco in any form, to prevent oral cancer menace and burden in India, is a welcome change. It gives the dental researchers another opportunity to renew their fight against tobacco associated oral diseases.[7]
 References | |  |
| 1. | Owen D. India bans e-cigarettes by executive order. Br Med J 2019;366:l5649. doi: 10.1136/bmj.l5649.  |
| 2. | Balaji SM. Tobacco smoking and surgical healing of oral tissues: A review. Indian J Dent Res 2008;19:344-8. [ PUBMED] [Full text] |
| 3. | Beaglehole R, Bates C, Youdan B, Bonita R. Nicotine without smoke: Fighting the tobacco epidemic with harm reduction. Lancet 2019;394:718-20. |
| 4. | Hajek P, Phillips-Waller A, Przulj D, Pesola F, Myers Smith K, Bisal N, et al. Arandomized trial of E-cigarettes versus nicotine-replacement therapy. N Engl J Med 2019;380:629-37. |
| 5. | Das S, Choudhury Y, Vaiphei, ST, Sharan R. A systematic review and meta-analysis on the health and safety implications of electronic nicotine delivery systems. Indian J Clin Pract 2019;29:1016-26. |
| 6. | Sultan AS, Jessri M, Farah CS. Electronic nicotine delivery systems: Oral health implications and oral cancer risk. J Oral Pathol Med 2018 Dec 3. doi: 10.1111/jop. 12810. |
| 7. | Balaji SM. Smokeless tobacco research. Indian J Dent Res 2015;26:445. [ PUBMED] [Full text] |
Correspondence Address:
S M Balaji
Executive Editor, Indian Journal of Dental Research, Director and Consultant Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, Balaji Dental and Craniofacial Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/ijdr.IJDR_906_19
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