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When e-cigarettes were first tested by cigarette smokers, there were complaints about them being too smooth. So propylene glycol was added to give users that harsh hit at the back of the throat they were used to. A lung doctor explains why the clouds of smoke that accompany vapes aren’t clean steam, but chemicals.

“We are not saying tobacco should be banned,” says Tshweu Mosedi, an anti-tobacco activist who wants to keep e-cigarettes away from kids. He supports the new Tobacco Bill that will restrict vape marketing and sales. The Health Beat team meets Mosedi in Katlehong on Joburg’s East Rand, where fruity flavours and flashy adverts have tricked youngsters and parents into believing that e-cigarettes are healthy.

Dive into the world of "upper deckys" and "Zynbabwes”. Nicotine pouches have sparked a global sensation, hailed by some as the future of tobacco cessation. Yet, behind the catchy nicknames and promises of harm reduction lie the exploitation of legal loopholes and questionable science. What’s really the deal?

Are e-cigarettes healthier than traditional smokes? The vaping and tobacco industries would have us believe that they are, but doctors and researchers are sceptical. We find out why young people are getting hooked on nicotine-enhanced fruity flavours — and break down the potentially deadly consequences.

Tobacco ads have been banned in many countries for years, but Big Tobacco is finding ways to get around the rules — like partnering with Formula 1 to punt their new products to a global audience. Could South Africa’s new tobacco Bill put an end to racing on our screens?

Head injuries from sport could be linked with someone developing brain disease later, says new guidance from experts. They’re calling for more time during games for players to be checked thoroughly — which could mean rules of play may have to change.

Some small-scale black tobacco farmers in Limpopo feel that the tobacco industry supported them under the guise of an upliftment programme, but then used them to fight against illicit tobacco trade. By 2021, the financial support dried up.

Bhekisisa Twitter Spaces are online sessions that allow our readers to engage with experts, policymakers and activists on prevalent health issues. The world’s biggest HIV...

In South Africa, a gene test that will tell you if you’re at risk for Alzheimer’s disease costs R3 600. But major organisations warn people against using these home kits without also getting counselling to help them work through the results — regardless of the outcome.

The health department got close to updating nurse prescribing rules in 2011, but didn’t follow through. Real change will have to happen soon since South Africa’s new HIV and TB strategy document says professional nurses have to help to prescribe antidepressants for 250 000 people by 2028.

What do researchers, experts and policymakers think of South Africa’s new five-year action plan for HIV, TB and STIs?

South Africa’s anti-smoking policies rely on increased sin taxes to cut smoking rates in the country. Experts say this is no longer enough, but people who use government facilities have very few other tools available to help them stop.

A plagiarism scandal has rocked the sports world and cast fresh doubt over the influence of the industry in research on head injuries. It also stirred up old allegations that sporting bodies have underplayed the risk of an incurable disease called chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

South Africa plans to roll out treatment for opioid addiction to all government health facilities by 2028, according to a draft of the country’s sixth HIV action plan. Read one person’s story of recovery here.

Independent research shows 54% of cigarettes sold in South Africa are illegal, which means the taxman is losing revenue, and the country’s anti-smoking plans are becoming less effective. Watch this to find out why.

British American Tobacco in South Africa says 200 of its workers will be out of a job soon, but public health researchers argue they’re using misleading figures to back the retrenchments.