The Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction has released its 2020 report. The report titled Burning Issues: The Global State of Tobacco Harm Reduction 2020 focuses on Tobacco Harm Reduction and the benefits of having available, affordable, appropriate, and acceptable safer alternatives to combustible tobacco products. It also dwells on the rights of smokers who need the opportunity to switch from smoking and those who have chosen safer alternatives.
In the context of the report, harm reduction has a more important aspect: a role in championing social justice and human rights for people who are often among the most disadvantaged, stigmatized, and marginalized in society.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), it is estimated that the total number of smokers globally stands at 1.1 billion. Nearly 8 million people die from smoking-related diseases every year. WHO also notes that an estimated one billion lives could be lost to smoking-related diseases by the end of the century.
Despite a fall in daily adult smoking levels across the world, the rates of decline have slowed in some countries. In others, the number of smokers has increased, often due to population growth.
The report stipulates that product innovation continues to offer a wide choice to adult consumers looking to quit or find a better alternative to tobacco smoking.
Vaping comes top of the list as one of the product innovations aimed towards reducing the use of tobacco.
By definition, vaping is the use of an electronic cigarette device commonly known as e-cigarettes that consist of an atomizer, a power source, and a container such as a cartridge or a tank so Instead of smoke, the user inhales the vapor. The report states that there are approximately 68 million nicotine vaping product users across the globe.
The highest number of vapers live in the United States, China, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Germany, and Mexico.
Even though there is no such thing as absolute safety, these innovative products have been in wide circulation for more than a decade, with accumulated evidence that they are much less risky than combustibles.
So far, no strong evidence has emerged to instill doubt that vaping is at least 95 percent less risky than smoking a cigarette. Emissions from vaping pose a negligible hazard to bystanders. People close to you and the environment won’t notice any smell of smoke especially the notorious tobacco smell. Vaping may have an aroma from the flavors used, but it’s not the smoke from dead tobacco leaves! To some people, the smell of vapor is barely noticeable. Sometimes you might even get a few compliments on the aroma. Even if you vape tobacco flavors, it won’t smell like the rank fumes that come from burning tobacco leaves.
Moreover, there is growing evidence that the use of these Safer smokeless products is more effective for smoking cessation than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). Many e-cigarette users vape as a first step towards quitting the habit of smoking. There is empirical evidence that many regular and chain smokers are reported to cease smoking for at least 3 months by using vaping as an aid to quit smoking. The Safer nicotine products, according to the report, offer a smooth highly successful exit strategy that has been shown to be acceptable to smokers and at minimal cost to governments.
Vaping emit substantially fewer toxins than conventional combustible cigarettes, meaning that the potential health risks from smoking are dramatically reduced by switching away from cigarettes. vaping also allows you to control the amount of nicotine you are consuming. There are different variety of nicotine strengths, ranging from 0 nicotine all the way to 36mgs of nicotine.
Also, If you prefer to smoke nicotine-free, you can have that option. You can also experiment with your e-liquid nicotine strength to land on the dose that is just right for you.
According to the report, so far vaping products haven’t shown any long-term effects as many people have been vaping for over a decade from all over the world without evidence of ill effects directly and exclusively related to vaping therefore putting the products higher up the hierarchy.
Vaping devices emit ‘vapor’, a mist-like aerosol. The user absorbs about 90 percent of the inhaled vapor. The exhaled vapor released into the environment is made up of liquid droplets whose chemical composition closely matches the composition of e-liquids: propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, nicotine, and water. These droplets evaporate and disperse in seconds and are completely unrelated to suspended particles of air pollution or cigarette smoke hence posing minimal risk to bystanders.
While the progress in helping people shift away from smoking is slow, harm reduction products according to the report and research did over the past decade indicate that indicates vaping is a better and safe alternative, therefore, have increasingly become a go-to option for consumers who wish to continue to enjoy nicotine without the risks inherent in cigarettes or who are looking for a more acceptable way to quit smoking until future research proves otherwise.
