Eight countries in the Americas have banned the use of electronic cigarettes.
“The resolution that regulates new and emerging nicotine and tobacco products in Venezuela is an important step forward for the country and for the region. We hope that this measure motivates other countries to take action on these products, which are addictive, harmful, and aggressively advertised towards the youngest,” says Dr. Anselm Hennis, Director of Non-Communicable Diseases Mental Health at the Pan American Health Organization.
Tobacco is estimated to kill one million people per year in the Americas. Though measures have reduced the percentage of smokers in the country from 28 percent in 2000 to 16.3 percent in 2020, adolescents in the region are particularly susceptible with about 11.3 percent said to use tobacco. The most recent resolution prohibits “the manufacture, storage, distribution, circulation, commercialization, importation, exportation, use, consumption, advertising, promotion, and sponsorship [of e-cigarettes].” Venezuela took the lead in adopting the resolution, with Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Suriname, and Uruguay following suit.
