German Association of the Tobacco Industry and Novel Products: WHO ignores scientific facts on e-cig

  The German Association of the Tobacco Industry and Novel Products has rejected the WHO’s allegations against e-cigarettes, saying that the harmful substances inhaled from e-cigarettes are far lower than those from traditional tobacco. The association argues that the WHO is ignoring a large body of scientific evidence and increasing consumer uncertainty.

Breaking news: According to the German-language media outlet nachrichten-heut, the World Health Organization (WHO) has claimed that e-cigarettes are not a suitable alternative for reducing tobacco consumption. The association says this disregards extensive scientific evidence and further intensifies existing consumer uncertainty.

“The WHO is clinging to misguided public health dogma and ignoring the growing body of independent scientific evidence on e-cigarettes,” explained Jan Mücke, Managing Director of the German Association of the Tobacco Industry and Novel Products (BVTE), in Berlin.

“In fact, the harmful substances absorbed when using e-cigarettes are far lower than when smoking.”

He said the WHO denies that e-cigarettes are an appropriate substitute for tobacco product consumption, emphasizes the health risks of vaping products, and accuses manufacturers of spreading misinformation about the benefits of e-cigarettes.

In Germany, switching to e-cigarettes is the most commonly used method of smoking cessation support and is more effective than other methods such as medical nicotine replacement products. Institutions such as the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and UK health authorities have confirmed that switching to e-cigarettes can significantly reduce consumers’ exposure to harmful substances. Referring to the harm reduction potential of e-cigarettes reflects a growing scientific consensus and is not misinformation from the tobacco industry.

In fact, the WHO’s alarmist and misleading claims about e-cigarettes are carelessly reinforcing the reality that, compared with smoking in Germany, the health risks of using e-cigarettes continue to be greatly overestimated.”

Mücke said:

“We need the WHO to adopt a fact-based, science-driven information policy that recognizes and supports e-cigarettes as an opportunity to minimize risk for adult smokers as much as possible.”

At the same time, there is no evidence that e-cigarettes serve as a gateway to smoking. However, the consumption of nicotine-containing products by minors must be prohibited. The German Association of the Tobacco Industry and Novel Products (BVTE) is calling for strict enforcement of the existing ban on sales to minors and severe penalties for violators.