Puffpaw, the blockchain-integrated vape pen that claims to “encourage people to quit smoking and vaping,” could actually keep users hooked and even encourage non-smokers to take up the habit.
This is the view of a leading addiction treatment center in the UK.
A so-called ‘vape-to-earn’ project, Puffpaw uploads your ‘puffs’ to the Berachain blockchain and issues tokens when you reduce the amount you use.
However, according to the UK Addiction Treatment Centers (UKAT), the product “will not help vapers reduce their use. If anything, it could have the opposite effect due to the enticing gamification and crypto reward that comes with vaping.”
The organization noted that when using Puffpaw, a person can be “sucked into a world of long-term vaping,” which “can worsen a person’s addiction,” and that it feels like “a business way to make money off people who try to quit smoking and lead healthier lives.”
UKAT also noted that “Puffpaw’s product could very well help people who still smoke cigarettes switch to vaping, but ultimately they only contribute to the false economy and creating even more vapers.”
In one interview, co-founder Reffo Tse failed to explain how Puffpaw can counter people who use Puffpaw’s vape pen while also choosing to continue vaping with other traditional e-cigarettes. The project also benefits vape pen owners when they ‘bump’ Puffpaw pens with another Puffpaw user.
Users on X (formerly Twitter) don’t seem too enthusiastic about the project. One user said: “I’m sorry, but why would people stop vaping if they were also getting paid in governance tokens to vape?”
Another user joked: “It will help you quit every time you puff, you’ll earn tokens and that’s somehow better for you than actually quitting. What the hell happened to this industry.”
Vaping has its own health risks
As for the health risks of vaping, it is not a completely safe alternative to smoking cigarettes. A peer review of 800 studies found that e-cigarettes contain and emit several toxins that can cause lung or heart disease.
However, it is also worth noting that according to the UK National Health Service, there is evidence that vaping is significantly less harmful compared to smoking and is seen as a method of kicking the habit.
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Another study from Addictive Behaviors found that young people who had used an e-cigarette were seven times more likely to smoke a year later. The Royal College of Paediatrics called for a ban on disposable vapes due to health concerns surrounding children, which the UK has since implemented.