UK Researchers Respond to WHO Vaping Warnings
WHO (The World Health Organisation) has recently issued new warnings
around vaping. This has caused UK Public Health experts to speak up and
question these warnings, and accused WHO of spreading misinformation
around the benefits and potential risks of vaping.
WHO have also said there isn’t enough evidence to support the use of vaping as a succesful cessation product. This is despite all available records and evidence of success stories from ex smokers who used Vaping as an alternative.
WHO’s warnings about vaping seem to echo the same warnings from US
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and some U.S. scientists, who
are expressing alarm over uncertain hazards from vaping.
Peter Hajek, who directs the Tobacco Dependence Research Unit at Queen
Mary University of London wrote the following statement which was released
by the UK Science Media Centre:
“There is no evidence that vaping is ‘highly addictive,’” he said. “Less than 1% of non-smokers become regular vapers. Vaping does not lead young people to smoking—smoking among young people is at an all-time low. There is clear evidence that vaping helps smokers quit.”
The Director of the UK Centre for Tobacco & Alcohol studies, and a consultant
in respiratory medicine at Nottingham University, John Britton- ‘’Vaping
are “clearly less harmful” than tobacco’’ “WHO misrepresents the available
scientific evidence’’.
The Public Health England still maintains that vaping is at least 95% less
harmful than smoking fag sticks.The UK has also said the WHO has a history of anti-vaping activism that is damaging their reputation.
There are still many investigations that will be carried out around the concerns
of vaping for both long term and short term. Studies are still ongoing to
explore whether vaping does pose any health risks to the lungs and
cardiovascular system.
For WHO they are still adamant that the downside of vaping clearly outweighs
their benefits. Currently vaping is banned in over 30 countries worldwide with
more and more countries consideration to follow this.
What we do know though is smoking kills more than 8 million people a year
worldwide and many ex smokers have shared publicly their success stories
about how vaping E Liquids helped them finally quit smoking after using
alternative methods like patches, gum, etc.
