Shaping a future of reduced tobacco harm

Tobacco use remains one of the greatest public health challenges of our time, with over 1.3 billion smokers worldwide and eight million deaths annually attributed to smoking-related diseases.

Despite decades of anti-smoking campaigns, the persistence of traditional smoking, coupled with the rising popularity of alternative nicotine products such as e-cigarettes and vapes, has complicated the war on nicotine addiction. This means there is a growing necessity to address the rise in alternative nicotine products, particularly among the youth.

While traditional cigarette use may be declining, particularly in the UK where there has been a 60 per cent reduction in smoking, alternative products are gaining ground. The challenge ahead is to ensure that emerging regulations on alternative nicotine products reflect the harm reduction potential of these products. Several public health proposals on smoking control can provide a roadmap for tackling the tobacco epidemic in a manner that emphasises public health, human rights, and consumer empowerment. Raising awareness of the harm of smoking and alternative nicotine products is critical to ensuring people make informed decisions based on long-term financial and health impacts.

Public health policies must prioritise bioethics and human rights by empowering consumers with knowledge of nicotine product risks, allowing them to reduce harm. Health literacy plays a vital role in tobacco control, and educating healthcare professionals and the public on smoking cessation strategies is key to success. Countries can benefit from sharing best practice, as seen in Sweden, where only five per cent of the population smokes because of effective harm-reduction policies. Prevention efforts, though not solely reliant on education, should focus on evidence-based interventions to reduce smoking initiation and prevalence.

Fair and proportionate regulatory frameworks along with differential taxation that incentivises lower-risk nicotine products are essential to driving behaviour change and reducing cigarette smoking. Transparent, data-driven policies grounded in scientific evidence should guide smoking cessation and tobacco harm reduction efforts. Ultimately, supporting smokers in quitting through evidence-based interventions remains the most effective way to reduce smoking-related diseases and deaths, and mainstreaming tobacco harm reduction as a public health strategy offers a viable solution for the future.

These proposals represent a comprehensive approach to tackling the tobacco epidemic, balancing prevention, harm reduction and cessation. Effective public health policy must be evidence-based and inclusive of all stakeholders, including consumers, manufacturers and healthcare experts.

The regulation of nicotine products should not be based on unfounded fears or economic concerns but on real-world impacts that these products have on public health. Poland has an evolving approach to tobacco control. Its public health policies are updated to reflect the growing use of alternative nicotine products, particularly among adolescents.

Source link : https://nation.africa/kenya/blogs-opinion/blogs/-shaping-a-future-of-reduced-tobacco-harm-4787604

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Publish date : 2024-10-06 21:00:00

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