The Minister for Health has announced a new campaign to raise awareness of the risks associated with nicotine e-liquids.
The Minister, Jenny Mikakos said data from the Victorian Poisons Information Centre showed that concentrations of nicotine were getting stronger and the number of child poisonings from e-liquids was increasing.
“Sadly, children have become severely unwell or died after swallowing e-cigarette liquid,” Ms Mikakos said.
“I urge vapers to be vigilant, make sure your e-liquids are locked up and out of reach and out of sight of children,” she said.
“There’s no doubt about it – vaping is dangerous.”
Ms Mikakos said the new video campaign, which highlighted the importance of being vigilant when using and storing e-cigarettes around children, came in response to a recommendation from the Victorian Coroner following the death of an 18-month old baby in 2018.
She said liquid nicotine was poisonous and could cause serious illness or even death if ingested, with children and pets being particularly vulnerable.
“E-liquid products for use in e-cigarettes come in flavours that are attractive to children but are not in childproof packaging,” she said.
“Due to either their size or strength, some refill bottles contain a lethal dose for a young child.”
Ms Mikakos said the State Government was pushing for a nationally consistent approach to the packaging and labelling of e-liquids and had implemented laws that regulated e-cigarettes in the same way as tobacco products.
