Across the pond over in the U.K. public health officials are urging smokers to switch to vaping according to Reuters.
Yes, you read that correctly. British public health officials are throwing their weight behind vaping. Calling e-cigs a way to save lives that might have been lost to smoking.
A review of evidence from Britain’s government-backed authority, Public Health England, stated that vaping and vaping devices could already be helping more than 20,000 UK smokers quit smoking. The report also acknowledged the widespread “public misunderstanding” regarding the role nicotine plays in health.
Less than 10% of adults fully understand that most smoking harm is not caused from the presence of nicotine.
Remember, the most danger from cigarettes comes from the combustion of the additives and chemicals in the tobacco, not the nicotine.
The report also declared there is no evidence to support that e-cigs are gateways to tobacco use for younger demographics. Which is a favorite argument among vaping opponents and naysayers.
“Our new review reinforces the finding that vaping is a fraction of the risk of smoking, at least 95 percent less harmful, and of negligible risk to bystanders,” said John Newton, a professor and director for health improvement at PHE.
The British PHE report closely follows the American equivalent from the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. A report which also states e-cigs significantly less harmful than combustible cigarettes.
But Britain’s PHE went a step further. By calling for smokers and English health authorities to enact policy based on these latest reports.
With international attitudes towards vaping shifting, you can expect to see more vaping in the news in the coming months.
