Vaping could be the means to inhale drugs inconspicuously, said a consultant respiratory physician today.

Malaysian Thoracic Society assistant treasurer Dr Helmy Haja Maidin said this when commenting on claims that marijuana could be added to vape juices.

Admitting that the drugs themselves could not be mixed with vape juices, Helmy, however, said the issue did not lie with the juice itself.

“It’s about using the device to surreptitiously inhale something that’s potentially illegal.

“It’s not about mixing drugs with the liquids on sale [...] it’s about using it in the device itself,” he said at a question-and-answer session on the topics of smoking and vaping in Petaling Jaya today.

Protesters outside the Prime Minister’s Department yesterday had stressed that the government’s claim that drugs could be added to vape juices was ridiculous .

Johor Health and Environment Committee chairperson Ayub Rahmat had on Nov 8 reportedly said he had received information of drug-laced e-liquids in Johor from several national agencies including the National Anti-Drugs Agency (AADK) and the Malaysian Drug Prevention Association (Pemadam).

However, there has been no conclusive outcome from studies done on vape liquids seized under the Poisons Act 1952.