Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Many experts have suggested establishing a legalframework to control new-generation tobacco products, including e-cigarettesand heated tobacco, and prohibit their use among students.

Speaking at a seminar on building legal barriers to new tobacco productsorganised recently in Hanoi by VietnamPlus newspaper, they argued that withoutproper regulation, new tobacco products could become a shortcut, making iteasier for young people to access and consume tobacco.

Dr Nguyen Huy Nga, Director of the Center for Health Environment Research andDevelopment (CHERAD) and former director of the Ministry of Health’s PreventiveMedicine Department, presented the results of an independent survey on theprevalence of new tobacco products among young people.

The survey, conducted on 1,000 students aged 12 to 17 in Hanoi, showed that18.4% had tried e-cigarettes, with 13.8% currently using them. Meanwhile, 4.5%of students had tried heated tobacco products, and 3.2% were still using them,primarily among high school students.

Specifically, 12-year-old students did not use heated tobacco products, but 5.5%of 17-year-olds were using them. 12-year-old students preferred e-cigarettes,with 9.7% using them. This percentage among 17-year-old students was 17.6%.

Notably, the survey showed that most students were aware of the harmful effectsof tobacco, yet the proportion of those who had smoked cigarettes or used newtobacco products accounted for 21.3%. The majority of students tended tobelieve that e-cigarettes and heated tobacco were less harmful than traditionalcigarettes.

In response to these findings, Nguyen Nho Huy, Deputy Head of the Ministry ofEducation and Training’s Physical Education Department, emphasised the need toenhance awareness about the dangers of new tobacco products.

Huy said the Ministry of Health should conduct comprehensive research coveringeconomic, social, national security, environmental, and health aspects, as wellas ethical education for young people.

“This groundwork will serve as the basis for presenting solutions and legaldocuments to the Government and parliament in order to amend the Tobacco HarmPrevention Law for new tobacco products, establishing a legal framework toprevent and minimise the access of young people to these products,” he said.

Dr Hiroya Kumamaru, Deputy Director of AOI General Hospital in Japan, presentedthe results of a 2021 survey sponsored by the Japanese Ministry of Health,Labour, and Welfare and conducted by a group of healthcare experts.

According to this survey, the use of traditional cigarettes, heated tobaccoproducts, and even e-cigarettes among junior high school students was very low,almost reaching a rate of 0%. Specifically, the usage rate of heated tobaccoproducts among high school students was only 0.1%.

The expert said the Ministry of Health was not concerned about the risk ofnew-generation tobacco products among young people due to strict regulations.

Ban on new tobacco products

Le Dai Hai, Deputy Head of the Ministry of Justice’s Civil and Economic LawDepartment, stated that traditional cigarettes, e-cigarettes, or heated tobaccoproducts all fell under the category of conditionally regulated business itemsaccording to the Investment Law, rather than prohibited items.

However, there was currently a specific legal gap in the management of theseproducts, making it easier for users to access illegally imported new tobaccoproducts, he added.

Hai also noted that the rate of young people experimenting with new tobaccoproducts was on the rise. Therefore, there must be a legal framework to managethese products.

Le Dinh Phuong, Head of the General Internal Medicine and Family MedicineDepartment at FV Hospital, said that a complete ban on new tobacco products wasnot feasible because, by the time such a ban was imposed, these products mighthave already proliferated in the black market.

According to Phuong, the law was currently lagging significantly behindpractical realities. A clear understanding of the benefits and harms of newtobacco products was essential when crafting legislation.

As an educational expert, Nguyen Nho Huy strongly advocated for an absolute banon young people using these products.

Sharing the same viewpoint, Nguyen Huy Nga said that it was essential toprohibit students from smoking at schools to have strict penalties forviolators.

Dr Kumamaru also shared Japan's experience, in which students under 18 were notallowed to smoke anything, whether it was traditional cigarettes, heatedtobacco products, or e-cigarettes. Those who were found to violate the lawwould face heavy sanctions, even expulsion.

Hai emphasised the need for stringent management of all tobacco products toprevent their presence in schools. He underscored that preventing students fromaccessing tobacco was clearly defined in the Tobacco Harm Prevention Law.

However, enforcement remained weak due to a lack of specialised enforcementagencies.

From a legal perspective, Hai said that creating a legal framework for newtobacco products would better control the quality of products. He also affirmedthat all tobacco products were harmful, but consumers of legal smoking agecould have less harmful choices.

"It's time for relevant authorities to urgently revise and supplementlegal documents to tightly manage these products," he recommended./.