Federal Health Minister Nina Warken has urged the states to improve the protection of non-smokers, emphasizing that vapes and e-cigarettes are more dangerous than many people assume. The federal government has already incorporated vapes and e-cigarettes into the non-smoker protection and the same should now be done on a state level, Warken stated in an interview with the Funke Media Group on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day.
The minister highlighted that the aerosols in vapes and e-cigarettes often contain health-hazardous substances and that they frequently serve as a gateway to smoking and addiction, particularly for children and young people. “We need stricter regulations here to protect children and young people” Warken emphasized, calling on the states to revise their non-smoker protection laws accordingly.
According to the Federal Ministry of Health, the federal government has already incorporated the use of e-cigarettes and vaporizers into the existing smoking ban regulation in the Federal Non-Smoker Protection Act. However, the federal government’s responsibility for non-smoker protection is limited to federal institutions, public transportation and train stations, while the states are responsible for the majority of the regulation areas, such as restaurants, schools, universities and hospitals.
The German Cancer Society (DKG) advocates for a non-smoker protection policy that looks beyond state borders, citing France as an example. “A non-smoker protection policy modeled after France’s would be a significant step in the right direction” said DKG General Secretary Johannes Bruns in an interview with the Funke Media Group. Germany is still lagging behind in terms of non-smoker protection.
Bruns emphasized that children and pregnant women are a particularly vulnerable group and that the failed attempt to ban smoking in cars when children or pregnant women are present in the last legislative period was regrettable. It is crucial, he added, that the non-smoker protection also applies to new nicotine products, such as vapes.
The DKG pointed out that smokers have a higher risk of developing cancer, not only for lung cancer but also for many other types of cancer, such as those of the mouth, larynx, esophagus, pancreas, kidneys, bladder, uterus, breast, bone marrow and colon. Bruns also highlighted the increased risk of heart and circulatory diseases and strokes for smokers.