The World Health Organization is still waiting for research and results on e-cigarettes.

The World Health Organization is still waiting for research and results on vaping.

Putrajaya, Nov 27 - The Health Ministry is preparing to wait for scientific studies to show that e-cigarettes can help smokers quit the habit before considering amending the law to ban vaping.

Deputy Health Director General Datuk Dr Lokman Hakim Sulaiman said the studies could be conducted locally or overseas. “There is no scientific evidence to date that e-cigarettes can help people quit smoking,” he added.

While waiting for the results of the study, he advised all smokers who are using e-cigarettes to quit the habit and seek alternative treatment, which has been available to the government since 2004.

Based on the field of psychology, to solve the problem of addiction (here referring to cigarettes), the solution here is not to give people something else to be addicted to, because if there is something else to be addicted to, then this is no longer a solution to addiction.

He also added: “ Vape or electronic cigarettes, cigarettes are like gambling. Before gambling used to be done with cards, now gambling can be done on computers.”

He said this to reporters after witnessing the signing of a memorandum of understanding on the M Quit service, which involves public-private collaboration to treat smokers to quit the habit.

The MoU was signed by Health Director Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abudullah on behalf of the Ministry of Health and representatives of University of Malaya, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Academy of Medicine Malaysia, Johnson and Johnson Sdn Bhd.

Dr Lokman was previously told that he had said the sale and use of e-cigarettes containing liquid nicotine was subject to the Poisons Act 1952, and the Food Act 1983 under the control of the Tobacco Products Regulations 2004.

On the M Quit service, Dr Lokman said the program has been successful in helping at least 21 out of 100 people quit their smoking habit.