Countries that Prioritize Harm Reduction See Significant Decrease in Smoking Addiction

According to a report by newsinfo, Canadian international public health policy experts have stated that countries that have disregarded the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) and instead adopted methods to reduce tobacco harm have witnessed the most notable decline in smoking addiction.

Professor David Sweanor, Chair of the Advisory Committee on Health Law, Policy and Ethics at the University of Ottawa, stated that countries such as Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Japan have seen a decrease in smoking addiction after allowing the use of e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products, and other smokeless tobacco alternatives that are less harmful than traditional tobacco.

The most important point is that for decades, we have known that the reason people die from smoking is due to inhaling smoke, not nicotine. We are aware that the countries that have experienced the largest decline in smoking rates have largely disregarded the recommendations of the World Health Organization, allowing alternative products to replace traditional cigarettes," Professor Svejna stated during a virtual event. This was reported by Italian publication Formiche and healthcare policy on November 24, 2023.

The virtual event was attended by renowned public health experts who discussed the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) by the World Health Organization (WHO). The convention's Conference of the Parties (COP), originally scheduled for November in Panama, has been postponed until February next year.

He is one of the international experts who wrote a letter to the World Health Organization, highlighting the challenges the organization faces in opposing tobacco harm reduction.

Professor Swaina stated that many countries are currently disregarding the recommendations made by the World Health Organization, due to its prohibitive and inflexible policies.

Professor Swaina stated that countries will ultimately overlook agreements that are detrimental to health and consumer rights. The consequence of this is a loss of trust in authorities. People no longer have faith in the World Health Organization. This comes at a great cost. We are now witnessing this situation unfold on a global scale, where authorities are no longer trusted.

He stated that, contrary to the guidelines of the World Health Organization, countries "can do things that are beneficial to their own people's health". I believe we are seeing more of such occurrences happening worldwide, with certain countries expressing their desire to implement effective measures in this regard.