Despite being banned, e-cigarette sales continue to be made under the counter. Especially the products marketed as ‘flavored’ contain thousands of harmful chemicals as well as the addictive substance THC. Experts say that those who use these products, which are at least as addictive as cigarettes, are switching from one addiction to another. So much so that E-cigarette products, which cause the same harm as cigarettes,It disrupts the heart and vein balance and increases the stress on the heart and veins. Banned products can also affect the veins that feed the heart and cause death. We witnessed how the products that poison young people are being marketed under the counter during our investigation in Kadıköy.
VIEW IN KADIKÖY
In Turkey, electronic cigarettes are subject to a ban on tobacco product advertising, and according to Law No. 4207, they cannot be sold on electronic platforms such as the internet or transported by cargo. However, despite all these measures, sales continue clandestinely via the internet or other illegal means. To understand how the laws are being ignored, we stopped by a passage in Kadıköy. When we said we wanted to buy ‘e-cigarettes’, some shopkeepers asked us to look in the back of the shops or in the drawers.
POISON FOR 800 TL
The price of banned products sold under the counter varies according to the number of puffs and the intensity of the aroma. The average figure is Tk.L. The sellers we asked about the possibility of the products exploding said that they would provide a guarantee and that they have been using this product for years. In KadıköyAceThe 20 thousand puffs of the smart products are sold for 800 TL, the 18 thousand puffs are sold for 700 TL, while the cheapest products are sold for 600 TL. Some of the products work with liquid. The part added to the liquid products to give them smoke performance starts from 200 TL.
IT IS ADDICTIVE
Experts said that illegal products sold under the counter were poisonous. Prof. Dr. Onur Noyan said, “E-cigarettes are thought to be less harmful, but this is wrong. Medical support is necessary to quit smoking.” Prof. Dr. Noyan stated that cigarettes release nicotine by burning tobacco, while e-cigarettes burn or vaporize nicotine, and added that the common feature of both is addiction.
Drawing attention to the harms of e-cigarettes, Psychiatry Specialist Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alptekin Çetin underlines that especially with flavored e-cigarettes, while the user is enjoying the aroma, they are also accepting many different harmful chemicals and nicotine, one of the riskiest addictive substances for the brain, into their body.
65 THOUSAND CHILDREN
Chest Diseases Specialist Dr. Nuran Gökbulut also said that 80 percent of the 1.3 billion people who use tobacco products in the world live in low and middle-income countries, adding, “Half of the children in the world are exposed to tobacco smoke and “Every year, 65,000 children lose their lives due to diseases caused by passive tobacco use.”
IT IS BEING BROKEN ILLEGALLY
On the other hand, products sold on the street are also marketed on the internet for between 1000 TL and 1500 TL. E-cigarette products are also smuggled into the country from abroad. As a result of our research, the first 7 pages of the search engine are the most common places where illegal sales are made. While the forum site where brokers share all the details about e-cigarettes is practically opening up the door to poisonous trade, experts say there are 15 thousand different e-liquids and electronic cigarettes on the market.
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