Recently, the WHO issued an emergency statement calling on countries to strictly control e-cigarettes. Less than a week after its release, it was met with strong resistance from public health experts and industry professionals in many countries. They angrily say that this assertion of exaggerating the dangers of e-cigarettes is out of touch with scientific reality and would cause catastrophic harm to the global public health environment.
Pictured: WHO's statement sparks backlash
In a statement, the WHO said that e-cigarettes are harmful to health and produce toxic substances, some of which are carcinogenic, and some of which increase the risk of heart and lung disease. E-cigarettes can reduce harm is a "perjury" made by the tobacco industry, and quitting smoking with e-cigarettes has no effect.
The Association of the German Tobacco Industry and New Products (BVTE) refuted it on the same day. "The harm reduction of e-cigarettes is not blown out by tobacco companies, it is verified by increasing scientific research and scientific consensus. Jan Mücke, Managing Director of BVTE, said.
In his opinion, whether e-cigarettes cause cancer or not is not a problem. Because nicotine has been proven to be non-carcinogenic, almost all of the 69 carcinogens released by cigarettes are produced when tobacco is burned, and e-cigarettes do not have a tobacco combustion process, so they can reduce most of the harm of cigarettes. And the German Cancer Research Center has confirmed that smokers who switch to e-cigarettes inhale much less harmful substances than cigarettes. ”
The relationship between e-cigarettes and cardiopulmonary diseases is also documented. Studies have shown that e-cigarettes do not cause heart disease and genetic abnormalities, and a number of studies have confirmed that switching to e-cigarettes can effectively improve the respiratory and cardiovascular systems of smokers. In recent years, it has been published in authoritative medical journals such as The Lancet and Journal of the American College of Cardiology. "It is shocking that the WHO is so blatantly ignoring a wealth of scientific evidence. Michael Landl, director of the World Alliance of E-Cigarette Lovers (WVA), said.
Pictured: Michael Landl
Exaggerate the negative effects of e-cigarettes, ignore the positive effects of e-cigarettes, greatly emphasize the known harm of e-cigarettes to teenagers, and do not mention the known benefits of e-cigarettes to smokers. Opponents of the WHO statement argue that such a statement with a clear position is not a so-called "urgent appeal", but a "dangerous misleading".
In fact, in recent years, the WHO has been denounced by many public health experts for the e-cigarette problem. Greek cardiologist Konstantinos Farsalinos has pointed out that the WHO's distortion of e-cigarette information is an "unfortunate step backwards", and former WHO **Derek Yach bluntly said that the WHO's tobacco control strategy has long been outdated, and embracing industry innovation is the right way.
If Sweden had listened to the WHO and banned e-cigarettes, many more Swedish smokers would have died from cigarettes today. Swedish tobacco control expert Lars MRamstr M wrote in a recently published article. According to the data, due to the promotion of e-cigarettes and other harm-reducing products, Sweden is about to reduce the smoking rate (the total number of cigarette users * 100%) to less than 5%, becoming the world's first "smoke-free" (smoke-free) country.
John Dunne, director general of the UK E-cigarette Industry Association (UKVIA), also provided relevant evidence. He said the decline in smoking rates in the UK is linked to the promotion of e-cigarettes, which are the most commonly used and most successful smoking cessation aids among British smokers.
Despite being refuted by experts, the WHO clings to the outdated view that the Earth is flat. John Dunne said that the WHO continues to "make up horror stories" to attack e-cigarettes, which will hinder smokers from quitting and cause catastrophic harm to the global public health environment.
Switching to e-cigarettes is the most common way to quit smoking among German smokers. The WHO's alarmism has made the health risks of e-cigarettes grossly overestimated. We need WHO to develop fact-based, science-based policies that recognise and support e-cigarettes to save the lives of smokers to the greatest extent. Jan Mücke said.