E-cigs at apartment also raise legitimate concerns
PUBLISHED: 14 Aug 2024 at 05: 02
Some child heath and baby rights experts have warned that allowing a child to smoke or be exposed to the dangerous air of an e-cigarette at home could probably be deemed a infraction of child protection laws.
Further public campaigns are therefore required to raise awareness of this issue as well as the dangers of second-hand vapour and vaping on both children’s and adults ‘ health, according to them.
” At home, smoking a cigarette or vaping exposes kids to and inhales second-hand air.” This action could be deemed a form of home murder”, said Sapphasit Khumpraphan, a member of the National Child Protection Committee.
According to Waraphon Phongphanitanon, an analyst with the Department of Women’s Affairs and Family Development, vaping at apartment is a violation of the Child Protection Act 2003 and could also be interpreted as a form of local crime under the Domestic Violence Victims Protection Act 2007.
The Tobacco Control Research and Knowledge Management Centre ( TRC ), led by Prof. Dr. Suwanna Ruangkanchanasetr, deputy director of the TRC, advised families to be familiar with the child protection law and understand its function while considering how crucial it is to protect their children from the danger of vaping.
She likewise urged stronger enforcement of the law that prohibits the buy and price of e-cigarettes in Thailand to defend Thailand’s kids from the health risk of vaping.
Assoc Prof Adisak Pliponkarnpim responded to picture videos on social media that showed families allowing their children to smoke because they thought it was safe because the smoke juice contains nicotine, which is addictive.
According to Dr. Adisak, who is a member of the Royal College of Paediatricians of Thailand and director of the National Institute for Child and Family Development ( NICFD ) at Mahidol University, vaping stimulates the secretion of the “happy hormone” dopamine, which causes blood vessels to constrict, which results in inflammation and free radicals.
More importantly, in adults and children alike, vaping could lead to a serious medical condition called e-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injury ( EVALI), said Dr Adisak.
Vaping in toddlers, in particular, may also affect the child’s growth from conception until 25 years of age, he said. Even worse, more research has revealed that, according to him, child smoking may possibly lead to cigarette smoking and drug addiction in after life.
According to him,” The American Heart Association recently indicated that second-hand air is also to blame for the higher occurrence of respiratory inflammation in people who are exposed to air from other families.”