Wisconsin implemented its Clean Indoor Air Act in 2010. In the nine years since the smoke-free law’s implementation, e-cigarette types and brands have proliferated, and “vaping” continues to grow in popularity beyond what anyone could have been imagined in 2010.
Many Wisconsin communities have strengthened their local ordinances to include e-cigarettes and vaping. [View a map of these communities.] The following trends in public health data support updating smoke-free workplaces law to reflect this reality:
Mounting evidence shows secondhand aerosol may be harmful to health
New products appeal to children and adolescents
[i] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. E-Cigarette Use Among Youth and Young Adults: A Report of the Surgeon General—Executive Summary. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2016.
[ii] National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. Public health consequences of e-cigarettes. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.17226/24952.
[iii] ASHRAE. Position Document on Secondhand Smoke, reaffirmed by ASHRAE Technology Council June 29, 2016. ASHRAE. Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, 2015 Supplement.
[iv] Wisconsin Youth Tobacco Survey: High School Fact Sheet. Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Control Program; Madison, WI: 2016. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01624.pdf.
[v] Wisconsin Youth Tobacco Survey: Middle School Fact Sheet. Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Control Program; Madison, WI: 2016. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01624a.pdf.
[vi] Wisconsin Youth Tobacco Survey: High School Fact Sheet. Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Control Program; Madison, WI: 2016. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01624.pdf.
[vii] Bach, Laura. Flavored Tobacco Products Attract Kids. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids; Washington, DC: 2017 (p. 3). https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/assets/factsheets/0383.pdf.
[viii] Allen JG, Flanigan SS, LeBlanc M, Vallarino J, MacNaughton P, Stewart JH, Christiani DC. Flavoring Chemicals in E-Cigarettes: Diacetyl, 2,3-Pentanedione, and Acetoin in a Sample of 51 Products, Including Fruit-, Candy-, and Cocktail-Flavored E-Cigarettes. Environmental Health Perspectives; Boston, MA: 2016 (p. 733). https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/wp-content/uploads/124/6/ehp.1510185.alt.pdf.
[ix] Wills TA, Knight R, Sargent JD, Gibbons FX, Pagano I, & Williams RJ. Longitudinal Study of E-Cigarette Use and Onset of Cigarette Smoking Among High School Students in Hawaii. Tobacco Control; London, UK: 2016. tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/early/2016/01/05/tobaccocontrol-2015-052705.
Many Wisconsin communities have strengthened their local ordinances to include e-cigarettes and vaping. [View a map of these communities.] The following trends in public health data support updating smoke-free workplaces law to reflect this reality:
Mounting evidence shows secondhand aerosol may be harmful to health
- E-cigarette aerosol can contain potentially harmful chemicals, including nicotine, heavy metals, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and ultrafine particulates.[i]
- E-cigarette use increases airborne concentrations of particulate matter and nicotine in indoor environments compared with background levels.[ii]
- The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), the international standards setting body and cognizant authority on ventilation and acceptable indoor air quality, has updated its recommended standard to include e-cigarette prohibition in smoke-free workplaces laws.[iii]
New products appeal to children and adolescents
- Nearly 1/3 of Wisconsin high school students have tried e-cigarettes.[iv]
- 87.9% of Wisconsin high schoolers and 96% of middle schoolers wouldn’t try e-cigarettes if they weren’t flavored.[v], [vi]
- Nicotine found in tobacco products including e-cigarettes slows brain development in adolescents.[vii]
- Two chemicals found in some e-cigarettes flavors – diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione – have been shown to cause irreparable lung disease.[viii]
- The use of any non-cigarette tobacco product, including e-cigarettes, predicts smoking cigarettes a year later. [ix]
[i] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. E-Cigarette Use Among Youth and Young Adults: A Report of the Surgeon General—Executive Summary. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health, 2016.
[ii] National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2018. Public health consequences of e-cigarettes. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.17226/24952.
[iii] ASHRAE. Position Document on Secondhand Smoke, reaffirmed by ASHRAE Technology Council June 29, 2016. ASHRAE. Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality, 2015 Supplement.
[iv] Wisconsin Youth Tobacco Survey: High School Fact Sheet. Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Control Program; Madison, WI: 2016. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01624.pdf.
[v] Wisconsin Youth Tobacco Survey: Middle School Fact Sheet. Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Control Program; Madison, WI: 2016. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01624a.pdf.
[vi] Wisconsin Youth Tobacco Survey: High School Fact Sheet. Wisconsin Tobacco Prevention and Control Program; Madison, WI: 2016. https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p01624.pdf.
[vii] Bach, Laura. Flavored Tobacco Products Attract Kids. Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids; Washington, DC: 2017 (p. 3). https://www.tobaccofreekids.org/assets/factsheets/0383.pdf.
[viii] Allen JG, Flanigan SS, LeBlanc M, Vallarino J, MacNaughton P, Stewart JH, Christiani DC. Flavoring Chemicals in E-Cigarettes: Diacetyl, 2,3-Pentanedione, and Acetoin in a Sample of 51 Products, Including Fruit-, Candy-, and Cocktail-Flavored E-Cigarettes. Environmental Health Perspectives; Boston, MA: 2016 (p. 733). https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/wp-content/uploads/124/6/ehp.1510185.alt.pdf.
[ix] Wills TA, Knight R, Sargent JD, Gibbons FX, Pagano I, & Williams RJ. Longitudinal Study of E-Cigarette Use and Onset of Cigarette Smoking Among High School Students in Hawaii. Tobacco Control; London, UK: 2016. tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/early/2016/01/05/tobaccocontrol-2015-052705.