FEATURE
FEATURE
HEATED TOBACCO
PRODUCTS
WHERE DO YOU STAND ?? By Patrick Griffin and Dave Turner
A news story in our last edition which referenced a heated tobacco product proved the most controversial and talked about article we have ever carried . Some people were very vocal in saying we should never mention heated tobacco while others said they wanted to know the facts about this alternative to smoking , so they could be better informed . In the wake of this , we sought out several views on the subject to help get a better understanding of how the vaping industry , regulators and other interested bodies felt about the subject .
If you are reading this article , it is highly likely that you are a member of the vaping industry or somebody with an interest both in vaping and in helping educate smokers about ways they can quit traditional tobacco . If a smoker asked you about heated tobacco products what would you tell them ? If they asked you to help them understand the differences between heated tobacco products and vaping products would you be able to give them informed advice ?
THIS ARTICLE SETS OUT TO SHOW WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THIS SUBJECT SO THAT YOU CAN BE BETTER INFORMED ON A CURRENT DEVELOPMENT IN THE WIDER ARENA OF PRODUCTS TO HELP OTHERS QUIT SMOKING .
As smoking rates continue to decline , new and innovative products will come onto the market and will continue to do so . Of all the products out there , we believe that e-cigarettes are by far the best alternative and increasingly more and more people are coming around to supporting this view too .
Most if not all Vapouround readers will be aware of the seminal Public Health England ( PHE ) cigarettes report of 2015 which concluded that , “ e-cigarettes are around 95 % safer than smoked tobacco and they can help smokers to quit .”
Recently PHE updated that report and you can read about that as it applies to e-cigarettes elsewhere in this issue . Interestingly the new report specifically addresses heated tobacco products this time round . The 2015 publication was titled , “ E-cigarettes : an evidence update ,” whereas the new report is called “ Evidence review of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products 2018 .” The report said : “ Compared with cigarette smoke , heated tobacco products are likely to expose users and bystanders to lower levels of particulate matter and harmful and potentially harmful compounds . The limited evidence on environmental emissions from use of heated tobacco products suggests that harmful exposure from heated tobacco products is higher than from e-cigarettes , but further evidence is needed to be able to compare products .”
PHE calls for more independent research into heated tobacco products and adds , “ Different types of heated tobacco products will have different characteristics and effects , presenting a challenge for research . Research is needed on relative risks of heated tobacco products to users and those around them compared with cigarettes and e-cigarettes . Evidence is needed on appeal of heated tobacco products to smokers and nonsmokers , particularly among youth . Effects on smoking need to be researched , this includes whether they replace or complement cigarettes . Due to co-branding of some products with cigarettes and the more similar sensory profile , findings may be different than for e-cigarettes .” The report concludes , “ The available evidence suggests that heated tobacco products may be considerably less harmful than tobacco cigarettes and more harmful than e-cigarettes .”
It said it was “ currently not clear ” whether heated tobacco products provided any advantage as an additional potential harm reduction product and went on to say ,
“ Depending on emerging evidence on their relative risk compared to combustible tobacco and e-cigarettes , regulatory levers such as taxation and accessibility restrictions should be applied to favour the least harmful options alongside continued efforts to encourage and support complete cessation of tobacco use .” The Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food , Consumer Products and the Environment ( COT ) recently compared the health risks of heated tobacco products to conventional cigarettes .
It said that exposure to “ compounds of concern ” in using heat-not-burn tobacco products was reduced compared to that from conventional cigarette smoke and added , “ It is likely that there is a reduction in overall risk to health for conventional smokers who switch to heat-not-burn tobacco products .”
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