According to Dallas Metropolitan News, the city of Dallas currently has cautious restrictions on the use of e-cigarettes in city facilities, but the latest proposal from the Dallas City Environmental Health Commission aims to further tighten the restrictions, expanding the smoking ban to all places where traditional cigarettes are prohibited. This important change has received preliminary approval from the Committee on the Environment.
Smoking bans are all over Dallas
The existing ban on smoking permeates all aspects of public life in the city of Dallas, including any indoor or enclosed public Spaces, non-smoking areas designated by property owners, parks, workplaces, and a wide range of retail and service establishments. This total ban reflects a community consensus that recognizes the harmful impact of smoking on public health.
Consider the health of children and asthmatics
The proposal was not made in isolation, but after a rigorous review of various medical studies and peer-reviewed articles.
The Environmental Health Committee, which advises the Environment Committee, has noted that exposure to e-smoke aerosol may have adverse health consequences for vulnerable groups, such as children and people with asthma.
The memo, issued on May 10, highlights a legislative trend in major Texas cities to implement ordinances restricting e-cigarettes in areas where traditional smoking is restricted, although there are certain exemptions in places such as bars and restaurants.
A series of cities have restricted e-cigarette use
Historical analysis shows a pattern of this limitation. Last March, the Houston City Council unanimously passed an ordinance banning smoking and e-cigarettes in public places. Austin perfected its smoking ordinance in 2017, similarly banning the use of e-cigarettes in public places such as buildings, workplaces, restaurants and parks in the city. In addition, the city of Frisco was a pioneer in the North Texas region, banning the use of e-cigarettes in public places back in 2014.
The central concern of the new proposal in Dallas is similar to that elsewhere: health risks to users and bystanders. The approach advocated in the proposal is based on the same rationale.
Dr. Folashade Afolabi, a pediatric pulmonologist who contributed her expertise to the Environmental Health Committee, articulated the multifaceted health risks associated with e-cigarette use.
She says the phenomenon could exacerbate conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In addition, the committee stressed that exposure to e-cigarette aerosol not only causes an increase in blood pressure and heart rate, similar to the effects of regular cigarettes, but also triggers an increase in respiratory inflammation, which is similar to the changes in symptoms seen in people with asthma.
References:
【1】City of Dallas vaping ban proposal gains momentum