# Anti-smoking advocates should embrace e-cigarettes



## Alex (27/8/15)

*Derek Yach: Anti-smoking advocates should embrace e-cigarettes*

by Derek Yach, National Post, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2015


Over the last decade, a range of new reduced-risk nicotine products such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have appeared on the market. Millions of smokers have used them to successfully replace their regular cigarettes, thereby reducing their risk of cancer, heart disease and lung disease. However, this positive trend is under attack by tobacco-control advocates and physicians who fear that the new products will be as bad as cigarettes, or who simply do not trust the tobacco companies that are creating some of these products.

I can understand their views. For decades, I led tobacco-control efforts, first in my native South Africa, then globally as a cabinet director at the World Health Organization (WHO). While at the WHO, in 1998, I invited tobacco companies to present their progress on what have become known as “reduced-risk nicotine products” in a scientific setting. We were unimpressed. But times have changed. E-cigarettes, and now a wider portfolio of reduced-risk nicotine products, are emerging from the laboratories of small start-ups and large tobacco companies. All have a common aim: give smokers a product that removes the harmful and deadly components of tobacco products (the tar), while providing the nicotine they crave in a similar dose and with the full experience they have as a smoker.

Some companies are now investing billions of dollars in e-cigarettes, hoping they can maintain a market for their products without killing their consumers. The science in favour of e-cigarettes is maturing and the U.K. government’s recent evidence update suggests that e-cigarettes are 95 per cent less harmful to health than normal cigarettes. And earlier this month, the Royal Society for Public Health issued a statement on nicotine being no more harmful to health than caffeine. Based on this evidence, it is time for public health groups in the U.S. and Canada to recommend that smokers who seek to quit should switch to e-cigarettes.

As for media trends, a review by the Vitality Institute found that over the last two years, there was an 1,800 per cent increase in e-cigarette mentions in top-tier media coverage in the U.S. E-cigarettes now eclipse tobacco and traditional cigarettes in stories about smoking and its effects. Yet most e-cigarette articles never highlight the product’s benefits. Instead they focus on scary stories: exploding e-cigarettes; kids overdosing on nicotine liquid; and even doctors and medical associations’ concerns about e-cigarettes being as harmful as, or worse than, regular cigarettes. The impact of these distorted media stories has led many smokers who had moved to e-cigarettes to move back to regular cigarettes.

It is time to end the war on e-cigarettes and view them as the smoking cessation aid that they are. This cultural change begins with a smarter regulatory path. Policymakers need to adopt regulations that encourage smokers to shift to reduced-harm products such as e-cigarettes and tighten up on regulatory actions aimed at regular cigarettes.

Last week, we saw a glimpse of what those policies might look like. Three leading health economists writing in the New England Journal of Medicine — Frank Chaloupka, David Sweanor and Kennet Warner — called for tobacco excise taxes to be set proportionate to the harm the product causes. These three have played a key role over the last 20 years in placing excises tax and pricing at the core of WHO, World Bank and government actions taken to curb tobacco use. Having worked with them, I know that their voice is taken seriously by the world’s finance ministers.

My view is that we need to build a significant gap between the actual prices of regular tobacco products and reduced-risk products, starting with an increase in taxes on the former, without favoring local brands (a practice followed in many developing countries) and by keeping the tax on reduced-risk products very low for at least two decades or until they command 75 per cent of the total sales of nicotine products. Careful attention should be paid to raising excise taxes on regular products as their use declines, with the goal of maintaining total government revenues.

The regulatory framework matters. But what has historically mattered even more is the advocacy of physicians. Because of that, it is also important to educate physicians about the differences between the health effects of nicotine and tar. Physicians dominate the policy space and their support will be needed to bring e-cigarettes into the mainstream.

Forty-two million Americans still smoke. Almost 500,000 Americans die from their habit every year. We need to act faster to adopt smarter regulations aimed at accelerating the transition out of harmful tar-based cigarettes — and for the first time, we have a range of scientifically proven products that will help smokers quit. E-cigarettes have to be part of the solution.

National Post

*Derek Yach is chief health officer of The Vitality Group.*

Source: http://news.nationalpost.com/full-c...smoking-advocates-should-embrace-e-cigarettes


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Reactions: Like 2 | Winner 1


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## Silver (27/8/15)

Super, thanks for sharing @Alex 
Like music to my ears!
In full agreement with Dr Yach

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1


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## Nick (27/8/15)

Good thing about this letter from our view point is that when the SA goverment jump on the band wagon in trying to tax us to death we have someone on our side who represents and manages the largest health player in the countr AKA Discovery..

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Kuhlkatz (27/8/15)

Nick said:


> Good thing about this letter from our view point is that when the SA goverment jump on the band wagon in trying to tax us to death we have someone on our side who represents and manages the largest health player in the countr AKA Discovery..



Money talks & BS walks. Despite one individual making the right noises, I do not see that as Discovery 'being on our side'. They are not discounting any Medical / Life Insurance policies for vapers vs smokers and I've not heard of them or any others that are even close to opening that possibility. When it comes to vices, we are simply on par with the smokers and both groups get bent over the same barrel. I honestly do not see them fighting that fight for us.


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## Nick (27/8/15)

Will be interesting to see. If your a smoker who has stopped for more than a year your premiums will reduce.. vaping is not smoking so why would you tell them you vape...

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## Kuhlkatz (27/8/15)

Ouchie - If you are on 0 nic for a year maybe.
If not, NEVER lie on any application. As far as they are concerned, you are still a smoker and a simple nicotine test WILL verify that fact. Whether the nicotine comes from SNUS, patches, vaping or an analog would not make the least difference to them. You might get declined insurance due to 'lying' on an application.


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## Nick (27/8/15)

Is there anyone on the forum that works for insurance companies ? they would be able to give some info, if you have not smoked for 20 years and get lung cancer that clearly was not caused from smoking they could hardly blame nicotine as its medically proven that Nicotene is not a carsongenic! (any doctors in the house?)


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## Kuhlkatz (27/8/15)

Soz for the derail from the original topic.
@Nick, there was a discussion or two last year sometime on the same topic where @BigGuy was involved in, and giving some good advice on. Here is one : http://www.ecigssa.co.za/medical-aid-etc.t6446/

I cannot remember if anything came from this, but when I switched insurance suppliers earlier this year, I was advised NOT to state non-smoker due to the nic testing. If ANY insurance company will give some form of rebate due to risk reduction, I'm sure most vapers will jump on that bandwagon without hesitation.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Nick (27/8/15)

I see Lawyers getting in on this at some point in the future, Vaping is clearly not smoking .. at best you can say you have a nicotene addiction which according to many doctors is no worse than having a caffine addiction..I suppose the jury is still out and in years to come things may change with regard to medical and life insurance. There may be a tick box that asks do you vape


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## BigGuy (27/8/15)

Just to add something which i have forgotten to add to that existing thread.

Over the past few months i have had several discussion with Cardiologists not only in RSA but abroad as well. We have since then found out that there are 2 other tests that insurers can use to test if you are a non smoker VS a smoker and they are the following 1) carbon monoxide test (a smoker is clearly shown here compared to a vaper) and then 2) an anabasine test, this is able to pick up the tar in your system but does not pick up nicotine.

After fining out about these 2 test i immediately jumped on the phone to the various Chief medical officers that i have been speaking to only to be told that they will not do these tests until there is concrete proof that it is not harmful. Obviously i gave them all stick and got a snarky reply from one of the chief medical officers via email which i posted my response to the DR in a thread on the forum.
http://www.ecigssa.co.za/im-sorry-there-is-no-cure-for-stupid.t12168/#post-233340

Since then i have found out that there has been some development overseas with Loyds of london that with the NHS getting behind eciggs that this might start a ripple effect down the line.

Most RSA insurers use reassures which are in Europe and if the reassures make a change RSA will benefit. 

I am fighting the fight but you too can fight the fight the more ammunition i have regarding stories like mine which i can take to the insurance companies the faster we can get them to change. I am more than willing to gather all the stories how vaping saved your life or has had an impact on your life and hand this over once i have enough people sending me stuff. if you want to voice your opinion send me your story at craig@sirvape.co.za and i will keep on fighting the fight.

Regards

BIGGUY

Reactions: Like 3


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