Thread by @vaper_the

@GregHuntMP / @TGAgovau pls note:
Reports are coming in that some batches of #varenicline (marketed as Champix or Chantix) have been recalled due to contamination with #nitrosamines.
[At low levels of - much lower than #cigarettes.]
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ema.europa.eu/en/news/suspen…

#Israel has issued a recall on those batches of #varenicline as has #Greece, while #SouthKorea is conducting an ongoing investigation..
Hopefully our TGA in #Australia is aware of the problem and is investigating as well.
2/
koreabiomed.com/news/articleVi…

But this thread is less about varenicline specifically and more about product recalls, quality control & #nicotine containing products such as #snus, #HTP / #HnB & (most) #eCigarettes. Product recalls are not possible in an illicit mkt or practical in a poorly regulated mkt.
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There is no /facility/ to recall such products.

So looking at the market for alternate #nicotine products in #Australia:
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#Snus is illegal for retail sale. Consumers can import it, but will face either stiff #TobaccoTax being added by customs, or confiscation of the product (it's really a crapshoot). No oversight or product quality assurance checking happens in either case.
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Facing either of those possibilities, some consumers make their own #snus. Often it is made from #ChopChop #tobacco grown locally - to avoid paying the high #TobaccoTax charged on all forms of legal tobacco (including pouch tobacco).
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Here is some #snus I got from a friend a week or so ago. Notice that one of the sachets is improperly sealed. I only just now noticed that, and discarded it.
That poorly-sealed pouch is not a great problem since it is easily recognised & dealt with.
7/

But it speaks to the bigger problem of #QualityControl. How can I know the #tobacco in these #snus pouches does not contain /high/ levels of #nitrosamines, or other #HPHCs? What would I even look for? I honestly have no idea.
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.@InsidePMI applied to have #IQOS approved for sale in #Australia within the last year. IQOS has already been determined to be 'appropriate for the protection of the #PublicHealth' by the @US_FDA via a rigorous & comprehensive #PMTA process.
9/
fda.gov/science-resear…

In a submission to the inquiry in #Australia, I pointed out that it was already /possible/ for Australians to use #HTP / #HnB products by putting loose #tobacco in Dry Herb Vaporizers (more often used for .. other plant material). You can see two types marked 5 & 6 below.
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While those devices are fortunately subject to a level of quality control according to standards for electronic products in #Australia, the problem (as might more often happen) comes from the #tobacco that is put into them. That tobacco can be seen in the packs marked 7 & 8.
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The pouch #tobacco marked as 7 is legally bought from a tobacconist. High tax, but at least if it's moldy, the product can be recalled. I've /seen/ a product recall notice in a tobacco shop to that exact effect. [Possibly not the brand seen there, but the point stands.]
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The black plastic bag OTOH (marked 8), contains #ChopChop #tobacco. Locally grown (probably), no #TobaccoTax, no oversight & insufficient quality control. I have bought this type of tobacco and at least one batch /reeked/ of mold.
PMI's application was rejected out of hand.
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Both #snus & #HTP / #HnB will /theoretically/ become legal in #Australia due to the confusing & unworkable #nicotine regulations being championed by our health minister Greg Hunt. As will Paan, Gutka, Naswar & any other of the more toxic forms of #smokeless #tobacco.
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I say theoretically, because the implementation of the laws beyond 'must be prescribed by an Australian GP' is entirely unclear at this stage.
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But there is a common factor to all but the #HTP / #HnB products using legal, expensive pouch #tobacco. And this includes the #nicotine for #vaping that the regs were originally /intended/ to apply to:

There. Is. No. Oversight. There is no option to enforce a product recall.
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The regs as proposed will not only make it difficult for #nicotine consumers to buy alternate products to #cigarettes & #tobacco 'prepared & packed for #smoking', but they will also offer no protections on the products for which we /do/ manage to get a prescription!
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If the government of #Australia is to have any chance of ensuring these products are appropriate for the protection of the #PublicHealth of the consumers of such products, they need to be appropriately regulated as consumer products!

Just. Like. #Cigarettes!

/fin

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@threadreaderapp unroll pls (you wonderful bot).