What is a “puff” ?
Perhaps you have already seen its colorful packaging at a tobacconist’s or in supermarkets. Maybe you have seen middle or high school students using it. A “puff” (from the English word for “inhale” or “puff”) is a disposable e-cigarette created in the United States in 2019. It works in the same way as a regular e-cigarette, but its reservoir cannot be refilled with e-liquid. It is therefore disposable. It produces an aerosol that is inhaled by the user. As with rechargeable e-cigarettes, the e-liquid in puffs may contain nicotine. This liquid contains several substances: propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, water, alcohol, flavorings…
Puffs have become trendy among teenagers: 10% of French people aged 13–16 had tried them as of July 2022. As of April 2023, puffs could be sold in France in tobacconists, supermarkets, online, and in e-cigarette shops…
It is particularly appealing to young people due to its many fruity and sweet flavors (“hazelnut,” “red berries,” “marshmallow,” etc.), its colorful packaging, and its attractive price (around €10 to €12 for a puff). It has been widely promoted to young people through social media and influencers. It can be used discreetly by adolescents in middle and high school settings.
What are the risks of puffs ?
- Puffs may lead young people to get used to the act of vaping and toeasily lead to addiction, especially among young people. Many middle and high school students today say they are “hooked” on puffs.
- Nicotine consumption through puffs (as with cigarettes) among young people can have harmful effects on a developing brain such as learning difficulties, sleep disorders…
- Users of nicotine-containing puffs also risk becoming dependent on nicotine and then transitioning to smoking. Puffs can then become a gateway to smoking among young people who do not smoke, even though smoking rates are currently declining among middle and high school students in France.
- The liquid inhaled by puff users, as with any e-cigarette, remains irritating, even though it does not contain tar or the toxic substances produced by tobacco combustion.
- Puffs contain plastic and a lithium battery and therefore represent a source of toxic pollution for the environment, all the more so as it is disposable.
The French National Academy of Medicine warned about the risks of puffs in its statement of February 28, 2023. It issued several recommendations: the need to inform the public, particularly middle and high school teachers, about the dangers of puffs; and the need to strengthen regulations on their sale to protect young people (sales to minors are already prohibited and must be enforced (Public Health Code), increased taxation, plain packaging…).
The ACT (“Alliance Against Tobacco,” a federation of associations fighting against tobacco in France) has called for a ban on puffs in France.
The National Assembly introduced a bill at the end of 2022 aimed at banning single-use vaping devices.
On Wednesday, September 25, the European Commission gave the green light for the ban on disposable e-cigarettes. A law aimed at banning these disposable e-cigarettes had been passed by the National Assembly and then by the Senate in December 2023 and February 2024. The bill then had to be approved by the European Commission.
References :
“The ‘Puff’, a new disposable e-cigarette: a trap for children and adolescents,” Statement from the French National Academy of Medicine, February 28, 2023
“‘Puff’ e-cigarette: the National Academy of Medicine warns about the risks,” LM Agudelo, *Revue du Praticien*, March 10, 2023
Website of the “Alliance Against Tobacco” (accessed in April 2023): https://alliancecontreletabac.org /
French Public Health Code :Articles L.3513-1 et following
Dr Barbara DEVIGNES, General Practitioner and Addiction Specialist
Consultant physician in addiction medicine for Klava
I declare that I have no conflicts of interest in the writing of this article.
