Despite a growing body of scientific evidence to the contrary, HealthJustice Philippines, a health group which advocates for higher tobacco product taxes and increased tobacco control, claims vaping is not safer than smoking cigarettes.
According to former Health Secretary Jaime Galvez Tan, now a member of the HealthJustice Philippines board, the notion that vaping is a healthy alternative to smoking “is a lie” and there simply “is no such things as a healthy substitute to smoking,” the Manila Bulletin reported.
“The tobacco industry, which has run out of sensible arguments in favor of smoking, is now trying to position vaping as a healthy substitute to smoking. That is a lie. There is no such thing as a healthy substitute to smoking.”
Galvez Tan’s statement comes in the wake of vaping advocate group The Vapers Philippines’ latest attempt to lobby the country’s government to endorse vaping as a less harmful alternative to tobacco smoking. Specifically addressing the advocate group’s call for the Department of Health (DOH) to endorse vaping in light of the scientific evidence to support the notion that it’s less harmful than smoking, Galvez Tan stated that such an endorsement by the DOH “would be the height of absurdity.”
“It would be the height of absurdity for the DOH as far as the national and international scientific and medical community is concerned, vaping or the use of electronic cigarettes is not completely safe because these still emit toxic chemicals.”
In their appeal to the DOH, pro-vaping The Vapers Philippines cited the findings of the latest Public Health e-cigarette evidence review which found vaping to be around 95% less harmful than smoking.
In response, Galvez Tan cited the World Health Organization’s previously issued report on Electronic Nicotine Deliver Systems (ENDS) and Electronic Non-Nicotine Delivery Systems in which the organization described such devices as tumor promoters.
Of course, if the World Health Organization’s policies are a reflection of their current understanding of the latest scientific evidence, there is always a chance that the organization will update its position on electronic cigarettes and similar smoke-free nicotine devices to encourage their use to smokers, as the American Cancer Society recently did when they updated their own position on e-cigarettes.
The American Cancer Society (ACS) now recommends e-cigarettes to smokers as smoking cessations in light of the currently available scientific evidence, which is a stark contrast to their previously held position that was in opposition to their use.
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