Electronic cigarettes are "undoubtedly
harmful" and should be regulated, the WHO said Friday as it warned
against the use of vaping products by smokers trying to quit their
deadly habit.
The growing popularity of e-cigarettes, battery-powered devices that
enable users to inhale addictive nicotine liquids, has raised fears
among policymakers worldwide of a new gateway addiction for young
people.
While vaping exposes users to lower levels of toxins than smoking, the
World Health Organization said the devices still pose "health risks" to
users.
"Although the specific level of risk associated with ENDS (electronic
nicotine delivery systems) has not yet been conclusively estimated, ENDS
are undoubtedly harmful and should therefore be subject to regulation,"
the WHO said in a new report on the global smoking epidemic.
There was also "insufficient evidence" to support claims of their
effectiveness in assisting smokers trying to quit conventional
cigarettes, it said.
"In most countries where they are available, the majority of e-cigarette
users continue to use e-cigarettes and cigarettes concurrently, which
has little to no beneficial impact on health risk and effects," the
report said.
Big tobacco companies have been aggressively marketing e-cigarette and
heated tobacco products in recent years as they seek new customers.
They argue such products are far less dangerous than traditional
cigarettes and can help some smokers completely switch to "safer"
alternatives.
But the WHO warned misinformation spread by the tobacco industry about e-cigarettes was "a present and real threat."
Restrictions on the use of e-cigarettes around the world is increasing.
San Francisco last month banned the sale and manufacture of the
products, which unlike tobacco cigarettes do not burn.
China, home to nearly a third of the world's tobacco smokers, is also planning to regulate the vaping devices.
More effort was needed to help smokers quit, the WHO said in the report,
noting only "30 percent of the world's population have access to
appropriate tobacco cessation services," such as counseling, telephone
hotlines and medication.
Without assistance, only four percent of attempts to stop smoking succeed.
Tobacco claims more than eight million lives each year either from direct use or second-hand smoke, according to the WHO.
While the number of users has declined slightly since 2007, it remains
stubbornly high at 1.4 billion, the vast majority of them men.
"People who quit tobacco can live longer, healthier and more productive lives," the WHO said.
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