Vaping at playgroup

[Imnotbilly]

I go to a very busy and popular playgroup once a week. There's lots of different rooms and activities, but the largest room is the most popular. It's like a mini bedlam for kids.

Last week I was there with my 2dc and a mum was sat there vaping. I don't care what crappy science you've got to try and prove they are safe - what sort of person vapes at a playgroup???!!!

AIBU to complain to management about this? AIBU to be hoiking my judgy pants well and truly up under my armpits?

[Rockelburger]

Well it is a particularly pushy friend who thinks her views are the only important ones! I also told her husband not to smoke (real cigarettes) for a few hour before they visit if he wanted to cuddle the baby.

My house my rules. Baby is too precious to even allow the possibility of anything happening to her. To be honest I've never liked her vaping near me even before I was pregnant

[StepAwayFromTheThesaurus]

I think it's a bit ridiculous to say that you must either allow people to vape anywhere whenever they want or its your own fault for making them smoke.

People just shouldn't be vaping at a playgroup. It's not appropriate.

I bet the OP wasn't the only person there who was unhappy but they were all being too British to say anything.

[OurBlanche]

it's not just water it's glycol whIch is a known irritant so much so it is used in medicines, foodstuffs, perfumes, atomisers, shampoo, skin creams and allergy is measured at 2% of eczema or fungal infections sufferers, most often seen in countries with low levels of sunlight/Vit D

But don't feed it to your cats.... apparently!

[OurBlanche]

I think it's a bit ridiculous to say that you must either allow people to vape anywhere whenever they want or its your own fault for making them smoke

No one has said that, I came closest I suppose. But didn't say that.

I will say that vaping is by far the most successful smoking cessation aid ever. I will repeat, it needs little and often usage, quite different from cigarettes. By banning it in many places it loses its efficacy. So, if it is banned, society as a whole will have decided to say 'fuck you, we care less for your health than our own sense of outrage'.

It is utterly disingenuous to keep on prattling about the dangers of vaping and the thoughtlessness of people who vape when most of us drive, use cars and many other ever day items that pose greater, measurable health risks. The world is not safe and focussing on minute risks we get to ignore the elephants in the room.. not a sensible strategy!

[Kennington]

At my ex local park about 10 metres from the play area young chaps smoke weed and deal it by the looks of it. But that is open air and I could only get a whiff.
I tolerated that but vapid get inside would horrify me!

[Sallystyle]

I vape, have done for three years and I think they are pretty darn safe and research is backing me up on that.

However, I wouldn't vape at a playgroup or anywhere indoors except my house and a pub if they allow it. I think it is kind of ridiculous that they are banned from most pubs, especially my local just because some people thought they could give them cancer, but whatever; I respect the rules.

I do vape at work outside the hospital. It's not really allowed but I have had patients come up to me on a regular basis and ask me for vaping advice and I consider it a job well done if I get one patient to make the switch.

[MrsJayy]

I work with little kids there is a no vaping rule just come in a parent was vaping in a hallway away from the children but its still not pleasant say to the organisers

[autumnboys]

We had this at our playgroup recently, so the building management amended the no smoking policy to include vaping.

[Sallystyle]

Pressed send too soon

Making vaping as socially unacceptable as smoking will only lead to more people dying of smoking related illnesses.

Society needs to be careful we don't alienate vapers like we have smokers. I agree that a playgroup is not the place for it though.

[Welshmaenad]

I vape. I'm pretty genned up on the 'crappy' if that's how we're referring to the BMA now science and I'm happy it's safe. I vape around my children, as do my ex husband and my partner.

However I wouldn't vape indoors at a playgroup (outdoor parks are fair game IMO and I'd never have smoked in one) purely because I appreciate some people mightn't like it.

Did it occur to you to politely ask her to desist, though, rather than getting all her up about it?

[milliemolliemou]

Vaping may be great for stopping people smoking. But not in places where it may encourage small non-smokers to think smoking of any sort acceptable. EG playgroups. School sports grounds. Presumably there's some sort of common sense around here?

[MrsJayy]

I see vaping like smoking so if you need a vape you go outside.

[Flumpsnlumpsnstuff]

I'm a smoker oh yes we are still here and I vape occasionally, but I was was shocked to have a patient vaping whilst having a consultation, I did tell them to behave and grow up and I think the same applies here. If you wouldn't smoke there don't vape. Simples

[Sallystyle]

Has anyone disagreed that you shouldn't vape in a playgroup?

I would vape in a playground but I would stand away from children.

I don't think I'm sending a bad example to my children by vaping indoors. They know how much I struggled with quitting smoking until I took up vaping and after three of them lost their dad to cancer they are very happy I vape instead of smoking and understand it is just a way of quitting smoking and not something you take up for the fun of it.

[ProcrastinatorGeneral]

I agree that electronic cigarettes shouldn't be permitted in places where standard ones aren't. The normalisation of having something in your hand to puff on is not good. All council buildings where I live have amended their smoking policies to include a ban on them, as has the local transport interchange and the bus/train companies. They're banned on school and hospital properties too. Using them isn't the end result, quitting is, so by making it as tricky to do as smoking is no bad thing.

I run a toddler group. If anybody decided to power theirs up they would be politely but firmly asked to leave until they were finished.




As an aside, what idiot decided to make flavoured ones? The smell is foul! The vanilla ones are an instant headache trigger for me and one of my children.

[NicknameUsed]

" I vape and I vape in a lot of places I'm not meant to (trains, pubs, my office"

If you got caught vaping where I work you would get a warning, not sure whether it would be verbal or written, but it has been banned where I work. I also think you underestimate other people noticing.

[hollinhurst84]

Sitting on the fence
When I smoked, nobody said anything apart from an occasional "not going to quit?"

Since I started vaping I've had
That will kill you (because the cigs wouldn't?)
It's the same as smoking (minus about 3995 chemicals and the far)
That stinks (worse than cigs?)
They're dangerous (again, aren't cigarettes?)
Haven't you quit smoking yet? (Yes, 3 weeks ago!)

I've been on 30 a day since I was 12, and this is the one thing that's helped me stop smoking

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Purely in terms of health risks to bystanders (and vapers) this is pretty harmless. The science isn't 'crappy', we've had two extremely thorough recent reports on ecigs from Public Health England and by Royal College of Physicians. Scientists can't 'prove they are safe' because that's not how science works, they can only look for evidence of harm (or potential harm) and so far they aren't really finding any. There are a few unknowns for long-term vapers but the best estimates place this risk at < = 5% of the risk of smoking. For bystanders, there is no discernible risk.

However potential harms from second-hand vapour are not the only factor to consider when deciding where it's appropriate to vape. Clearly a playgroup is an inappropriate setting because it's a children's space. It's just rude to the children regardless of anything else. ASH have a good guide to the various factors worth considering when deciding whether to allow vaping in workplaces and venues.

The sort of person who vapes at playgroup is someone who is trying to do a brilliant thing for their health and the health of their DC but hasn't quite got the etiquette sorted yet. She might be someone who is struggling to last the session because she hasn't had her usual ultra-fast hit of nicotine that you can only get from smoking. You could hoik your judgy pants and put in a complaint or if you wanted to be kind you could just have a quiet word and ask her to stop (if it was me I'd give her a few pointers on being discreet).

[hollinhurst84]

Making it as tricky to do as smoking means people are likely to just go sod it and go back to cigs
I have to stand in a smoking area and use it, I don't want to because it means I smell of smoke and I'm still around it. Luckily I can stand outside so a bit away from the smoking

[LazyJournalistsQuoteMN]

My GPs don't allow vaping in the practice/building. I saw a complete twat man vaping IN CHURCH at the weekend
I doubt I hid my disgust well.

[peggyundercrackers]

YABU I don't think it's that bad, children are exposed to 101 different things which are much worse for their health e.g. Diesel engines of any sort, additives in food, hidden sugars and hidden salt.

[BeezerBubble]

Not banned indoors by law but nothing to prevent establishments banning vaping if they so wish and I suppose a playgroup entitled to take such an approach.
Heartening though that bans on vaping on hospital grounds are being lifted, see NHS Glasgow & Clyde and Nottinghamshire NHS Trust.
Indoor bans not supported by likes of ASH and Cancer Research UK; simply put those bodies that don't like vaping follow ideological anti stance of the clueless BMA.
"Using them isn't the end result, quitting is, so by making it as tricky to do as smoking is no bad thing. " - Aye, keep the buggers smoking, don't make it easy for em! FFS.

[PoundingTheStreets]

Don't smoke, don't vape. Wouldn't allow anyone to smoke around my DC or in my home/car. Honestly don't mind anyone vaping in my home or car or around my DC. It's water vapour. As for bad smells? No worse than cheap perfume IMO (and probably about as dangerous given the chemicals in cheap perfumes).

[MrsJayy]

I smoke so i really cant say a word about vaping tbf but vape vapour is just as unpleasant as fag smoke those big tank machines are like steam trains the mist that come off them surely people should be considerate who the vape near

[PlentyOfPubeGardens]

Making vaping as socially unacceptable as smoking will only lead to more people dying of smoking related illnesses.

Society needs to be careful we don't alienate vapers like we have smokers.

This with giant knobs on.

The etiquette of vaping is still being worked out because vaping is a new thing. There are of course places where vaping is not OK but to just see vaping as a form of smoking and therefore wherever you can't smoke you shouldn't vape is ignorant and does harm.

Vaping is not smoking and it deserves consideration as a separate thing. Sending vapers out to stand with the smokers is a really good way to sabotage their quit attempt.