Smoke alarm

Fears vaping flavours & colours attract kids

- EMMELINE SAUNDERS

Watermelon bubble gum, blueberry sour raspberry, gummy bear, ginger cola sound like sweets - but they are definitely not for kids.

These are some of the flavours of electronic-cigarette liquids which make vaping so popular.

Since 2015 vaping has been promoted as a way to stop smoking but it has also become a habit. The UK has 3.2 million regular adult vapers, compared with 5.6 to 6.6 million smokers.

The Government aims to turn smokers into vapers and make England smoker-free by 2030.

To that end one in five smokers will be sent a vape starter kit and offered support to help them kick smoking. Pregnant women addicted to cigs will be given up £400 to in vouchers as an incentive to quit.

Smoking during pregnancy ups the risk of miscarriage and can damage lung and brain tissue in unborn babies. The potential long-term risks of vaping are still largely unknown. Vape pens can cause throat and mouth irritation, headaches and coughs in users, while the nicotine they contain is a stimulant that raises heart rate and can constrict blood vessels, preventing nutrients from getting to the skin.