Following a move to expand the smoking bylaw in Regina that limits where a person can light up or use an electronic cigarette, Dr. Brad Thorpe is hoping something like it can be adopted in Moose Jaw.

The new Regina ban now includes restaurant patios, all city-owned outdoor public spaces and golf courses. It also expands to include vaping, treating the electronic devices like cigarettes.  Thorpe, President of the Five Hills Regional Medical Association, believes limiting where nicotine products can be used has an impact.

"By introducing areas that ban smoking will help people who are smokers, to quite smoking." said Thorpe. "We also know that the effects of second hand smoke are very negative and can be as powerful, in terms of their impact on health."

Despite what people who sell vaping supplies advertise, e-cigarettes might be slightly less harmful than tobacco products but Thorpe says they still introduce carcinogens into the system and need to be treated like cigarettes. Thorpe has a meeting set for this week with Mayor Fraser Tolmie to discuss options for Moose Jaw.