DON’T LET DISINFORMATION ENDANGER LIVES, TOBACCO HARM REDUCTION IS REAL
By Joseph Magero (African Times Guest Writer)
Everyone wants to reduce the approximately
30,000 annual tobacco-related deaths in Kenya;
so it’s especially disappointing to see the nay-
sayers undermining our best opportunity to do
just that.
Tobacco harm reduction products, such as e-
cigarettes and tobacco-free nicotine pouches,
are quickly proving to be the most effective and
safest alternatives for smokers who want to
switch from traditional cigarettes, but who want
to continue enjoying nicotine or who are
struggling to quit altogether. They are an
innovative option for thousands of smokers
previously confronted with the ‘quit or die’
scenario, as they focus on short-term attainable
goals rather than long-term ideals. And these
alternative products have been developed with
the knowledge that the real harm from
traditional cigarettes is caused by the burning
of tobacco, which releases thousands of
disease-causing toxicants. E-cigarettes and
nicotine pouches don’t burn tobacco and
therefore deliver nicotine with a dramatically
reduced risk.
There are literally hundreds of peer-reviewed
scientific papers assessing these products, and
the reviews by public health institutions across
the world indicate that these products have a
much lower risk profile than cigarettes. 24 of
the world’s leading public health institutions
publicly support the use of vaping in their public
smoking cessation campaigns. And it is
notable that many of these institutions come
from countries ranked as having the lowest
levels of tobacco industry interference in
Government policies. When readily available,
reduced risk alternatives act as an effective
tobacco harm reduction tool and provide
smokers with the option to choose safer
alternatives over cancer-inducing cigarettes.
For example, the effectiveness of “Swedish
snus”, a type of modified oral tobacco pouch, in
reducing smoking incidence and tobacco
related disease is evident in Sweden, where
there is the highest consumption of pouches
and the lowest smoking rates in Europe.
Tellingly, the Swedish rate of tobacco-related
lung cancer for men is less than half the EU
average.
So, for activists to spread disinformation that
might deter smokers from switching to these
products is downright dangerous. We need a
balanced approach to alternative nicotine
products and not a knee-jerk reaction, as they
are clearly designed to help smokers
successfully move away from tobacco.
Not only are they effective, they cost
Government nothing while helping to reduce the
disease burden from smoking. The risk we
should most definitely avoid is to allow
disinformation to block smokers from
switching to tobacco-free alternatives that help
reduce smoking-related disease.
(The writer is the Chairman of CASA Africa.
Email Joseph@safer-alternatives.org)
Leave a Comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.