Nicotine / THR - Statements from Organizations

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THR statements

Thank-you Charles A. Gardner, PhD for the original compilation of this list. Thank-you to the volunteers from around the world who provide statements for us to add to this collection!

"SAFER than smoking"

World Health Organization EURO Office

International Agency for Research on Cancer

Cochrane Systematic Review

Public Health England

Royal College of Physicians

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence

British Medical Association

Cancer Research UK

British Lung Foundation

Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation

Royal College of General Practitioners

Royal Society for Public Health

Stroke Association UK

Action on Smoking and Health UK

National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training

British Heart Foundation

National Fire Chiefs Council

London Fire Brigade

National Health Service Scotland:

“Smoking kills. Helping people to stop smoking completely is our priority. …There is now agreement based on the current evidence that vaping e-cigarettes is definitely less harmful than smoking tobacco.”

This statement was created and endorsed by: Action on Smoking & Health Scotland • Cancer Research UK • Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland • Chief Medical Officer for Scotland • NHS Ayrshire and Arran • NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde • NHS Lothian • NHS Tayside • Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation • Royal College of General Practitioners • Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh • Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow • Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland • Scottish Collaboration for Public Health Research and Policy • Scottish Consultants in Dental Health • Scottish Thoracic Society • UK Centre for Tobacco & Alcohol Studies • University of Edinburgh • University of Stirling

Health Service Executive Ireland

“The HSE cannot recommend e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation aid, as they are not currently regulated or approved in Ireland for that purpose. However, for those unable or unwilling to stop using nicotine, using e-cigarettes (also known as ‘vaping’) is generally regarded as less harmful than smoking tobacco. We recommend that smokers trying to quit smoking by using e-cigarettes do so in combination with approved supports." (Note: This is from a news article, not from an official policy statement)

"The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) also caution against workplace bans on e-cigarettes. HSE’s advice is that “an employer needs to consider e-cigarettes in the wider context of risk in the workplace. We are aware that some organisations have banned their use, but this is not something HSE has advised on.”

New Zealand Ministry of Health:

“The Ministry considers vaping products could disrupt inequities and contribute to Smokefree 2025. The evidence on vaping products indicates they carry much less risk than smoking cigarettes but are not risk free. Evidence is growing that vaping can help people to quit smoking. There is no international evidence that vaping products are undermining the long-term decline in cigarette smoking among adults and youth, and may in fact be contributing to it.”

Cancer Society of New Zealand:

“E-cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products are less harmful than tobacco smoking.”

Royal Australian & New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP):

“Research in Australia shows that 70% of people with schizophrenia and 61% of people with bipolar disorder smoke compared to 16% of those without mental illness. …RANZCP recognises the potential harm reduction benefits presented by e-cigarettes and vaporisers for people living with mental illness, and the need for legislative reform for these to be realised. The RANZCP therefore recommends: Exemption of nicotine-containing e-cigarettes and vaporisers from the restrictions imposed under the Poisons Standard so that they may be subject to stringent and suitable regulations as consumer products (and) lower rates of taxation for e-cigarettes and vaporisers compared to smokable tobacco products to ensure affordability for low-income smokers, and to provide a financial incentive to switch.”

Drug and Alcohol Nurses of Australasia:

“People with drug and alcohol dependence have high smoking rates and are more likely to die from a tobacco-related disease than from their primary drug problem. E-cigarettes are battery-operated devices that heat a liquid solution, which may or may not contain nicotine into a vapour for inhalation, simulating the behavioural and sensory aspects of smoking, and they are currently seen as a legitimate form of tobacco harm reduction.”

Royal Australian College of Physicians:

“The RACP acknowledges that e-cigarettes may have a potential role in tobacco harm reduction and smoking cessation for smokers unable or unwilling to quit.”

German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment:

“According to current knowledge, e-cigarettes are less harmful than conventional tobacco products when used as intended.”

French National Academy of Medicine:

“It is established that the vaporette is less dangerous than the cigarette. It is therefore preferable for a smoker to vape. Since 2016, the High Authority for Health (HAS) considers it ‘as an aid to stop or reduce the consumption of tobacco by smokers.’ Santé Publique France indicates that at least 700,000 (French) smokers have quit using electronic cigarettes. Smokers who were about to switch to vaporizing instead of tobacco should not hesitate…” (Google Translate from original French)

French National Academy of Pharmacy:

“The World Health Organization’s anti-e-cigarette position is incomprehensible. Tobacco is responsible for 73,000 deaths in France. The e-cigarette helps people quit smoking. Its components are obviously less harmful than tobacco.” (NOTE: This is a Tweet from the Académie Nationale de Pharmacie. Not an official position statement.)

French National Cancer Institute:

"Early studies show that the use of e-cigarettes can reasonably be given a place in the smoking cessation system by making a pragmatic risk-reduction argument by switching from cigarettes to e-cigarettes.

US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine:

“While e-cigarettes are not without health risks, they are likely to be far less harmful than combustible tobacco cigarettes. There is substantial evidence that... exposure to potentially toxic substances from e-cigarettes is significantly lower compared with combustible tobacco cigarettes.”

US Food & Drug Administration:

“Make no mistake. We see the possibility for ENDS products like e-cigarettes to provide a potentially less harmful alternative for currently addicted individual adult smokers who still want to get access to satisfying levels of nicotine without many of the harmful effects that come with the combustion of tobacco.”

US Centers for Disease Control:

“E-cigarettes have the potential to benefit adult smokers who are not pregnant if used as a complete substitute for regular cigarettes and other smoked tobacco products.”

American Cancer Society:

“Based on currently available evidence, using current generation e-cigarettes is less harmful than smoking cigarettes.” (NOTE: This was the official statement from 2018-2019. As ofNovember 2019, ACS no longer recommends e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation tool. Their stated reason for this change was “e-cigarette use by young people.” Their new statement still says, “former smokers now using e-cigarettes should not revert to smoking.”)

American Heart Association:

“Participants who vaped exclusively showed a similar inflammatory and oxidative stress profile as people who did not smoke cigarettes or use e-cigarettes. ...Compared to participants who smoked exclusively, those who vaped exclusively had significantly lower levels of almost all inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers.”

American Association of Public Health Physicians:

“Smoke-free tobacco/nicotine products, as available on the American market, while not risk-free, carry substantially less risk of death and may be easier to quit than cigarettes. ...Smokers who have tried, but failed to quit using medical guidance and pharmaceutical products, and smokers unable or uninterested in quitting, should consider switching to a less hazardous smoke-free tobacco/nicotine product for as long as they feel the need. Such products include pharmaceutical Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) products used, off-label, on a long term basis, electronic “e” cigarettes, dissolvables (sticks, strips and orbs), snus, other forms of moist snuff, and chewing tobacco.”

Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK / TFKAF) :

“E-cigarettes could benefit public health if they help significantly reduce the number of people who use combustible cigarettes and die of tobacco-related disease.”

Government of Canada:

“Vaping is less harmful than smoking. Completely replacing cigarette smoking with vaping will reduce your exposure to harmful chemicals. There are short-term general health improvements if you completely switch from smoking cigarettes to vaping products.”

While evidence is still emerging, some evidence suggests that using e-cigarettes is linked to improved rates of success. While quitting cigarettes, you may go through a time when you use both cigarettes and vaping products. Switching from tobacco cigarettes to vaping will reduce your exposure to many toxic and cancer causing chemicals.

Canadian Heart & Stroke Foundation:

“Emerging evidence demonstrates that e-cigarettes are less harmful than conventional cigarettes. Through the legalization of e-cigarettes containing nicotine, there is improved access to e-cigarettes for current smokers, therefore allowing adults more choice around alternative methods of nicotine intake and/or tobacco cessation. ...Those unable to quit smoking would be better off using e-cigarettes over the long-term, rather than continuing to smoke regular cigarettes.”