Vaping, opportunity or threat? Against a backdrop of lobbying and medical uncertainties, the battle rages

The most iconic innovation has been the electronic cigarette, twenty years after its appearance and ten years after the actual start of a huge commercial boom. An essential difference from cigarettes, “vapotuse” does not contain tobacco, but liquid, usually filled with nicotine, and inhaled in vapor form. There is no tar or carbon monoxide, which are the main culprits in the numerous cancers and cardiovascular diseases associated with smoking. The risks, therefore, are much lower in priority.

Conflict of influence

However, the WHO has so far distinguished itself by a radically skeptical posture towards vaping. The organization denies the claim that it is less dangerous than cigarettes. This position, shared by a number of anti-tobacco organizations, is based on the precautionary principle. Almost none have more than ten years of steam under their belt, so it’s too early to rule out major long-term risks. Along these lines, about thirty countries have banned vaping, such as India and Mexico.

These positions are strongly opposed by a host of pro-vaping organizations. They decry the missed opportunity to promote a better alternative to cigarettes, the dangers of which are well-documented. Who is leading this invasion? Partly because the traditional tobacco industry, which has been slow to react to this revolution, has invested heavily in vaping and other new products.

In October, the Guardian daily published a message from senior tobacco company manager Philip Morris, who ordered his teams to fight the WHO’s “restriction” program on “smoke-free” products. When questioned, Philip Morris said it was responsible for “presenting to governments and the media the value of innovation in reducing smoking rates more rapidly”. This type of lobbying goes beyond the Panama Summit. According to some anti-tobacco organizations, it has been available in many countries for a long time.

“Very complicated” situation

In the United Kingdom, between 2021 and 2023, “we have documented numerous interactions between the tobacco industry and legislators, and much of the concern is about vaping, other new products and their regulation,” reports Tom Gatehouse, a researcher at Tobacco Tactics, an organization associated with . for the University of Bath. According to him, there is a way to regain influence by positioning themselves unfairly as players in the fight against tobacco, while the sector still derives most of its income from cigarettes.

However, Tom Gatehouse admits the situation is “very complicated” because pro-vape lobbying is also carried out by electronic cigarette manufacturers and resellers, whose interests sometimes diverge from the tobacco industry. While some pro-vape organizations are affiliated with it, others insist on their independence. “For some people, there is a form of honesty and they really believe that vaping is the solution to smoking,” admits Amelie Aschenbrenner, spokeswoman for the National Committee Against Smoking in France, citing the Sovape Association.

Among the key differences between these players, she notes that tobacco companies deliberately maintain confusion between electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco, which is perhaps a more dangerous product than e-cigarettes. However, according to Amelie Aschenbrenner, even sincere defenders of vaping use scientifically baseless rhetoric, especially when they oppose measures to protect teenagers such as flavor bans. or disposable vaping devices, “puffs”, recently announced in France and the United Kingdom.

Useful for weaning

A review of the research provides rebuttals to both camps. Contrary to what pro-vaping advocates say, no study with rigorous methodology supports the idea that flavor bans will discourage smokers from switching to vaping. In contrast, anti-vaping advocates, starting with the WHO, play down its promises as a cessation tool for smokers. There is “strong” evidence that electronic cigarettes are more effective at quitting smoking than nicotine patches, according to Cochrane, the world’s most prestigious scientific body, which compiles numerous studies and regularly updates its findings.

A difficult question remains to be resolved: Is vaping, booming among young people in many countries like France, driving them to cigarettes? This is one of the main arguments against electronic cigarettes. “We’ve been able to clearly show that young people who vape smoke later, but the cause and effect relationship is controversial,” says Jamie Hartman-Boyce, who has overseen several studies on smoking for Cochrane.