WHO fails to catch up with consumer-led innovation to end smoking

THE World Health Organization (WHO) and other anti-vaping groups have failed to catch up with consumer-driven public health innovations, particularly smoke-free technologies that are now helping millions of smokers quit, according to tobacco harm reduction (THR) advocates.

Prof. David Sweanor, an adjunct professor of law at the University of Ottawa in Canada who has a 40-year career in tobacco control and law, said the debate on THR is often clouded by assumptions about unknown risks from new technologies.

“This has often amplified the levels that overshadow the dangers of known risks. This is what we’ve always dealt with, with innovation,” Swearnor said during the recent Global Forum on Nicotine in Warsaw, Poland.

“I think the fact that we’re seeing so much progress, that consumers themselves are moving, that the politicians are going to have to follow that. Because otherwise all they do is lose credibility. That’s now happening with WHO.”

He said consumers are leading the shift, seeking out and experiencing the benefits of safer alternatives to cigarettes, such as vapes, heated tobacco, and oral nicotine pouches.

“Anti-nicotine groups often rely on sloganeering instead of data,” he said. “They prioritize abstinence-only approaches, potentially sacrificing the health of millions of smokers who could switch to safer options.”

The market for cigarette alternatives has grown into a $350-billion global industry, according to Harry Shapiro, executive editor of the Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction report. “Over 120 million people worldwide, mainly in high-income countries, now use safer nicotine products,” he said.

Sweanor compared the rapid change in the nicotine industry to the rise of mobile phones. He underscored the need for regulations that acknowledge both innovation and potential risks.

“Even with all the obstructions, consumers are moving to these products. Even in countries that have tried to ban them and ban them harder. These products are still reducing cigarette smoking. So we’re seeing consumers move. The market’s moving,” he said. “It’s unstoppable. You’re not going to stop innovation.”

Sweanor criticized anti-vaping groups for prioritizing