WHO Is Failing at Lifesaving
The World Health Organization is failing to recognise the lifesaving qualities of smoke-free nicotine alternatives such as vapes, according to Smoke Free Sweden
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by Dave Cross
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The World Health Organization fails to recognise lifesaving qualities of smoke-free nicotine alternatives, says Smoke Free Sweden. The leading global health experts urged the World Health Organization to use World No Tobacco Day to recognise the lifesaving potential of alternative nicotine products, but the Bloomberg influence organisation spurned the opportunity.
Smoke Free Sweden says: “The World Health Organization has repeatedly failed to highlight the transformative and lifesaving impact that alternative products, such as e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches, have had on adults looking to quit smoking.”
Sweden’s approach to tobacco harm reduction has shown that it is possible to stop young people from starting to smoke while also helping adults find a safer path away from cigarettes. According to Sweden’s public health agency, smoking is lowest among those aged 16-29 at a smoking incidence of 3.8%. This is even lower than the Swedish average of 5.6%, which is the lowest in all of Europe.
Smoke Free Sweden continues: “In Sweden, the availability of alternative nicotine products has resulted in 44% fewer-tobacco related deaths than the European average, a lung cancer rate that is 41% lower, and 38% fewer deaths attributable to any cancer.”
Dr Delon Human, leader of Smoke Free Sweden, commented on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day, saying that it was, “disheartening to see the WHO continue to ignore the success of Sweden. Sweden’s experience shows that harm reduction can be a powerful tool in achieving public health goals and reducing the prevalence of smoking-related diseases.
“The WHO’s neglect of adult smokers seeking safer paths is like that of a building with no fire escapes: leaving occupants with no route to flee the dangers of smoking. As the foremost international health body, it has a responsibility to help save the almost 8 million adult lives lost to smoking each year.”
Recently, Smoke Free Sweden released its full report looking at the impact of non-combustible nicotine alternatives on tobacco control and tobacco harm reduction. Smoke Free Sweden said: “‘No Smoke, Less Harm’ provides valuable insights and encourage important discussions on effective strategies for reducing tobacco-related harm.”
About Smoke Free Sweden
Smoke Free Sweden is a movement that encourages other countries to follow the Swedish experience when it comes to Tobacco Harm Reduction. Sweden is about to become the first ‘smoke free’ European country, with a smoking rate of below 5 percent. This remarkable achievement can be attributed to Sweden’s open attitude towards alternative products.
More information about Sweden’s successful approach to becoming a smoke free nation can be found on the Smoke Free Sweden website.
References:
- Smoke Free Sweden - www.smokefreesweden.org
Dave Cross
Journalist at POTVDave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous start-ups to develop content for their websites.
