Health and wellbeing reporter

Cara Hallinan says she and lots of of her pals are feeling very fearful about the looming disposable vape ban.
In truth, she says: “I’m not sure what we are going to do.”
The 25-year-old took up vaping 5 years in the past.
One of her pals gave her a pant on theirs and that was once it, she may just after all wean herself off cigarettes.
Cara says it was once cherry fizz flavoured vapes which helped her give up her 20-a-day smoking addiction, and now, because the ban looms, she’s purchasing as many as she will be able to ahead of they change into unlawful to promote or provide throughout the United Kingdom.
“I’ve been buying boxes of them from my local discount store. They’re trying to get rid of them, so I’ve been getting ten vapes for £20.”
Cara says she’s were given about 40 vapes now, sufficient to closing a couple of weeks, however she desires to stockpile sufficient to get her in the course of the summer season.

From 1 June, it’ll be unlawful to shop for or promote disposable vapes. Only units regarded as to be reusable might be criminal. They should have a chargeable battery, a replaceable coil and be refillable.
Cara understands there’ll nonetheless be all kinds of vapes in the market to shop for, however she’s no longer satisfied they are going to paintings for her.
“With everything else going on in my life, what if I forget to recharge my vape? And then I wake up one morning without a vape, or I run out of charge at work?
“I’m used to the convenience of having the ability to purchase a disposable one once I want.”
Cara is one among more than three million ex-smokers who have made the switch from cigarettes to vapes over the past few years.
While vapes are considered a healthier alternative to cigarettes, there are concerns that vaping provides a gateway into nicotine addiction – with disposable vapes enticing children and young people with their fruity flavours and cheap prices.
Even though rechargeable vapes are the most popular, there are still around 30% of vapers who prefer to use disposable vapes.
“One of the large sights is ease of use,” Dan Marchant, owner of online retailer, Vape Club, and co-founder of the UK Vaping Industry Association (UKVIA), says.
“Buying a disposable vape is like purchasing a packet of cigarettes – simply nip to the store and get one over-the-counter.”
He says he’s seen sales of the most popular flavours of vapes double over the past few weeks as some customers stock up.
Another online retailer, Haypp, has also seen sales rise ahead of the ban.
Haypp’s scientific director, Dr Marina Murphy, said: “Daily gross sales are actually incessantly surpassing even our Black Friday peaks, which had in the past been our greatest gross sales days.”
Some are worried about the change in taste. Disposable vapes tend to be sweeter than refillable vapes due to them often having more sweeteners and nicotine salts in the E-liquid.
‘Smoker of the 12 months award’
After 40 years of chain-smoking cigarettes, Baroness Claire Fox of Buckley says it was the strawberry and banana flavour disposable vapes that finally helped her quit.
“They labored a deal with and for the previous 18 months I’ve been smoke-free.”
The 64-year-old peer admits it wasn’t easy, but after being advised by two doctors to try vapes, she’s gone from being the “proud winner of the smoker of the 12 months award” to a life free from the harms of tobacco.

And now, she says, she is dreading 1 June when the disposable vape ban comes in.
“I’ve been stocking up with stashes of brightly-coloured vape bins each at house and at paintings.
“The rechargables have a metallic, battery taste which I don’t like.”
She says disposable vapes have had a “miraculous impact on smoking levels”.
“Finally, we have a smoking cessation device that works and we ban it – it’s counter- productive and daft.”
The outspoken peer, who frequently berates regulation she sees as infringing civil liberties, says environmental considerations are obviously trumping public well being considerations.
The UK govt desires to scale back the have an effect on at the setting – an estimated 5 million disposable vapes had been thrown away closing 12 months – and reduce the choice of youngsters and younger other folks vaping.
Health professionals agree somebody who does no longer smoke must no longer get started vaping, as it’s going to purpose long-term injury to lungs, hearts and brains.
A Censuswide ballot, commissioned by means of Vape Club, requested 2,000 vapers throughout the United Kingdom how their conduct had been going to switch within the wake of the ban subsequent month.
While 49% of people that use disposable vapes mentioned they had been going to change to various kinds of rechargeable units, and 16% mentioned they had been going to prevent vaping altogether, it has additionally produced some “worrying results”, Mr Marchant says.
“We found that 11% said they were going to stockpile after the ban – by going abroad and buying from countries where disposables are sold legally and then bringing them back into the UK.
“And extra worryingly, 18% mentioned in the event that they could not pay money for disposable vapes they might return to smoking after the ban is available in.”

This is something, Nick, who owns Mist Vapes, recognises, as he points to the local newsagent a few shops down the road in Whalley Range, south Manchester.
“Many of my common shoppers say they are going to forestall vaping when the ban is available in, as an alternative of coming right here, they’re going to pass to Booze and Cigs down the street and select up a pack of cigarettes and return to smoking.”
He is worried about the future of his business.
He points to the rows of pastel-coloured boxes, lined up on shelves that cover a whole wall in his shop. There are popular flavours like pineapple ice, rainbow and blueberry sour.
“They’ll have to head,” he says. “And that is just about £6,000 price of inventory down the drain.
“I only set up my business a year ago, so it’s relatively new. I knew the ban was coming, but with 90% of my sales being disposable, I’ve had to keep on restocking.”
He believes the federal government has failed small retail retail outlets like his personal.
“I don’t think it’s going to make much difference to vaping habits – many of the rechargeable vapes now look the same as the disposable, you can buy them pre-filled and charged.”
He turns one over – the one distinction he says is the charging level on the backside.
“I’m selling the rechargeable at the same price but with less of a mark-up.”

The govt says disposable vapes “blight our towns and cities”.
Circular financial system minister, Mary Creagh, says the ban will spice up the financial system long-term.
“This is an important step on the road to a circular economy, where we use our resources for longer, clean up our communities, accelerate the path to net-zero and create thousands of jobs across the country.”