Key point: Dr. Brian King, director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products, discussed opportunities and challenges in educating adult smokers about the relative risks of tobacco products in an article published in the journal Addiction.
Dr. Brian King, Director of the FDA Center for Tobacco Products, published an article in the scientific journal "Addiction" discussing the opportunities and considerations for educating adult smokers about the relative risks of tobacco products. Dr. King co-authored this article with Dr. Benjamin Toll, Director of the Tobacco Treatment Program and Co-Director of the Lung Cancer Screening Program at the Medical University of South Carolina. The article emphasizes the findings of a recent survey regarding misconceptions about the harms of tobacco products (including cigarettes and e-cigarettes). The survey found that only about 20% of adult smokers believe that e-cigarettes contain fewer harmful chemicals than cigarettes. In fact, while no tobacco product is completely safe, existing scientific evidence indicates that the harms of tobacco products vary, with cigarettes being the most harmful.The article points out the necessity of educating adult smokers about the relative risks of tobacco products (including e-cigarettes). However, while making these efforts, it is also important to prevent youth from using tobacco products; encourage frontline use of FDA-approved smoking cessation therapies; and for adults who both smoke and use e-cigarettes, emphasize the importance of fully transitioning to e-cigarettes. Since no tobacco product is safe, the ultimate goal should be to quit all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes. The article also emphasizes that any educational efforts regarding the relative risks of tobacco products must be evidence-based. In particular, it is crucial to assess the benefits of tobacco products for adult smokers and the risks for non-target populations (such as youth). Currently, the FDA is in the early stages of a research project to evaluate information on the continuum of tobacco product risks among adult smokers.
