Concerned over the increasing prevalence of vaping among youngsters, actor-director Nandita Das too has joined ‘Mothers Against Vaping’, a collective of mothers dedicated to combating the rising issue of vaping among children and youth. Alongside other influential figures like Baichung Bhutia, Deepa Malik, Dutee Chand, Neha Dhupia, and Kushboo Sundar, Das is lending her support to raise awareness about the dangers of modern tobacco devices. According to those who think that e-cigarettes are better than conventional smoking, a large US study has said that vaping at any point in life has been linked to a 19 per cent increase in the risk of heart failure.
Expressing deep concern over the increasing prevalence of vaping among young people, Das highlighted the urgent need for collective action. “As a mother of a teenager, I worry for all children and hope that they don’t fall prey to such harmful addictions. The issue demands our immediate personal and collective attention,” she said. “Today’s children are intelligent and exposed to a lot of information. They are also vocal and rational. So we need to explain to them logically the dangers of such devices that may look attractive or ‘cool’. They can see reason if we engage with them constructively and compassionately,” Das said.
Das stressed the role of constructive and compassionate dialogue in helping children understand the risks associated with vaping, leveraging their intelligence and access to information. Though the Government has been proactive in banning e-cigarettes and has taken decisive action by prohibiting e-cigarettes and similar new-age gateway devices through the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarette Act (PECA), 2019, there have been many cases of smuggling of these devices reported from several States.
