- Ned Stafford
- 1Hamburg
Health authorities in Germany are warning of potential risks to health from electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), with a top official at the German Cancer Research Centre in Heidelberg calling it one of the major new health issues currently facing Germany and the rest of Europe.
Martina Pötschke-Langer, head of the centre’s cancer prevention unit, told the BMJ that e-cigarettes usually contain nicotine and other potentially harmful substances. But unlike medical products that contain nicotine, such as chewing gum and patches used to help cigarette smokers quit, which can be bought only in pharmacies, e-cigarettes can be sold over the internet or in tobacco kiosks and other shops. Current information on the health effects of e-cigarettes is dangerously meagre for a product already on the market, she said, adding that research efforts need to be greatly intensified to provide a foundation on which to base regulatory decisions.
“E-cigarettes are one of the most …
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