Vapers Digest 28th May

Wednesday’s News at a glance:

THR Summit Announced ~ Restrictions Could Reduce Switching ~ Misconceptions About Nicotine Undermine Public Health Progress ~ CAPHRA Condemns WHO’s Anti-Science Agenda On World Vape Day ~ How best to manage new nicotine and tobacco products? ~ Status Update: The Consumer Advocates for Smoke-Free Alternatives (CASAA) ~ Can We Rely on Youth Nicotine Pouch Use Figures? ~ European Commissioner Hoekstra wants an EU nicotine pouch tax by summer ~ ‘I don’t know what we’ll do’ – Vapers panic-buy ahead of disposables ban ~ Disposable vapes save lives. Why ban them? ~ This Is HARM, Not Harm Reduction ~ The Disobedient Body ~ Science Wounded and Evidence Shaken: Brad Rodu Dismantles Stanton Glantz ~ The Paradox of the Inverse Conclusion: How a Study Contradicts What Its Data Seem to Say ~ World Vape Day: Science, Cinema, and Citizenship in Defense of Harm Reduction ~ CoEHAR writes to the Prime Minister of Malaysia: effective regulation, not bans needed ~ EU states urge Brussels to raise cigarette taxes and impose vape levy ~ Roadmap to a safer future through Tobacco harm reduction: Reflections on the lives saved report, Nigeria and Kenya ~ Nigeria’s Pathway To Saving Thousands Through Tobacco Harm Reduction ~ WHO is Undermining Its Own Tobacco Control Goals ~ FDA’s War on Vapes Misses the Mark—Again ~ Trump Promised To ‘Save Vaping.’ His FDA Head Does Not Seem Inclined To Do That. ~ Government issues detailed opinion on France’s proposal to ban white snus ~ TobaccoIntelligence Exclusive for GFN25 ~ WILL THE FDA CHANGE ITS APPROACH? ~ THE PHILOSOPHY OF TOBACCO HARM REDUCTION

Two from Dave Cross, Planet of the Vapes

THR Summit Announced

Organisers have stated that they are delighted to announce that the international 8th Summit on Tobacco Harm Reduction by the International Association on Smoking Control and Harm Reduction (SCOHRE) will take place at the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation, Athens, Greece, from September 30th to October 1st, 2025. They are inviting you to join from wherever you are located “and participate in the discussion on tobacco control, smoking cessation, novel tobacco products, regulatory issues and developments”.

Restrictions Could Reduce Switching

A study produced by researchers led by Dr Harry Tattan-Birch at University College London (UCL Behavioural Science and Health) finds that if politicians want to reduce teen vaping then they should make devices “boring”. The trade-off to this is that they also found that boring vapes will probably deter adult smokers from switching to vaping.

Misconceptions About Nicotine Undermine Public Health Progress

Julie Gunlock, Independent Women’s Forum

A recent survey reveals a disturbing gap in knowledge among doctors: two-thirds either mistakenly believe or are unsure whether nicotine causes cancer. This confusion among medical practitioners isn’t just an academic issue; it has real-world implications for public health, government regulators, and individuals trying to quit smoking.

CAPHRA Condemns WHO’s Anti-Science Agenda On World Vape Day

Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA)

The Coalition of Asia Pacific Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (CAPHRA) today challenged the World Health Organization’s (WHO) anti-vaping stance as “scientifically bankrupt,” accusing it of endangering public health by ignoring evidence that safer nicotine products save lives.

The rebuke coincides with the upcoming WHO’s World No Tobacco Day (30 May), which CAPHRA claims weaponizes misinformation to justify prohibitionist policies. “

How best to manage new nicotine and tobacco products?

Jean-François Etter, Nicotine, tobacco and smoking cessation

Technological innovations have revolutionized the nicotine and tobacco market, and the new products are very popular among young people. So what would be a rational and acceptable approach to maximizing the potential benefits and mitigating the potential harm of these products?

Can We Rely on Youth Nicotine Pouch Use Figures?

Richard Crosby, The Daily Pouch

Earlier this month, Martin Cullip wrote a great article on a paper titled How much does the absence of the ‘hidden population’ from United Kingdom household surveys underestimate smoking prevalence?.

European Commissioner Hoekstra wants an EU nicotine pouch tax by summer

Pouch Forum

According to an article by vape advocate Clearing the Air, Commissioner Hoekstra recently informed Members of the European Parliament in a closed-door meeting that the European Commission aims to propose higher taxes on safer nicotine products by this summer. The article also reports that the proposal currently circulating within the Commission remains largely unchanged from the draft leaked in 2022—one that would lead to significant tax increases on reduced-risk products.

‘I don’t know what we’ll do’ – Vapers panic-buy ahead of disposables ban

Ruth Clegg, BBC

Cara Hallinan says she and many of her friends are feeling very nervous about the looming disposable vape ban.

In fact, she says: “I’m not sure what we are going to do.”

The 25-year-old took up vaping five years ago.

Related: Disposable vapes ban could push 200,000 people back to smoking, report warns

Disposable vapes save lives. Why ban them?

Lukas Degutis, Spectator Australia

In a week’s time, it will be illegal to sell disposable vapes in Britain. Politicians from both parties will pat themselves on the back. The ban was introduced by Rishi Sunak and backed by Keir Starmer, and was hailed as a moment of non-partisan unity. In truth, it’s a policy disaster.

This Is HARM, Not Harm Reduction

Skip Murray, Skip’s Corner, Let’s Talk!

Making vapes look like a trinket harms the smoking harm reduction movement. I don’t want to hear any excuses about adults having the right to have fun, freedom of choice, consumer demand, etc.

I don’t want to hear about the goofy cannabis products or the silly things that can be found in the world of things involving alcohol. A little common sense is needed here, not examples proving that two wrongs will never make a right. We need to take responsibility for our space. The other guys have way more lobbying power than we do; they can fight their own “kid-friendly” battles.

Four from Claudio Teixeira, Dispatches From the Editor’s Desk

The Disobedient Body

In the health imaginary, giving up an addictive substance is often mistaken for a kind of physiological redemption. One quits smoking, and the lungs, freed, breathe again. One gives up alcohol, and the liver, in its biochemical silence, offers thanks. But the human body— that terrain of fragile balances and complex adaptations— doesn’t always respond with immediate gratitude.

Science Wounded and Evidence Shaken: Brad Rodu Dismantles Stanton Glantz

We know that when science bends under the weight of agendas, knowledge doesn’t just weaken—it becomes a public hazard. We also know that not all evidence enlightens; some, carefully manipulated, obscure what it should reveal.

The Paradox of the Inverse Conclusion: How a Study Contradicts What Its Data Seem to Say

Can a study, replete with figures and charts, ultimately deny what its own data quietly whispers between the lines?

Imagine flipping through a scientific journal and encountering a statement delivered with the confidence of a natural law: Cigarette consumption has dropped dramatically in recent years, while the use of electronic cigarettes has skyrocketed. But there is no relationship between the two phenomena.

World Vape Day: Science, Cinema, and Citizenship in Defense of Harm Reduction

Every May 30th, World Vape Day emerges as an act of health insubordination—an uncomfortable proposal for some, but an urgent one. In the face of policies that demand all or nothing, this global day affirms alternatives—those that save, support, and listen. Backed by science, art, and organized citizens, the harm reduction movement challenges institutional silence and defends an often-denied core principle: the right to choose how to care for oneself.

Center of Excellence for the Acceleration of HArm Reduction (CoEHAR)

As part of its international efforts to promote evidence-based public policies for tobacco harm reduction, the CoEHAR – Center of Excellence for the Acceleration of Harm Reduction at the University of Catania – has sent an official communication to the Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, regarding the State of Terengganu’s decision to implement a ban on the sale of vaping products starting August.

EU states urge Brussels to raise cigarette taxes and impose vape levy

Paola Tamma, Andy Bounds, Financial Times

A majority of EU member states have called for the European Commission to press ahead with a long-delayed plan to tax vapes and raise minimum excise rates on cigarettes and cigars.

Roadmap to a safer future through Tobacco harm reduction: Reflections on the lives saved report, Nigeria and Kenya

Peter Bismark, B&FT Online

Ghana stands at a critical crossroads in its public health trajectory. As tobacco-related illnesses continue to claim lives and burden the nation’s healthcare system, there is a need to propose a workable solution, like some countries have, and adopt a more pragmatic approach to tobacco control.

Nigeria’s Pathway To Saving Thousands Through Tobacco Harm Reduction

YUSUF ADEBAYO, Independent

As global public health strategies continue to evolve, a shift is underway in how nations approach the persistent challenge of tobacco use. While traditional tobacco control measures like taxation, public smoking bans, and advertising restrictions have delivered some positive outcomes, their limitations are becoming increasingly clear. In particular, these methods often overlook a critical truth: many smokers struggle to quit, even when aware of the health risks. For such individuals, Tobacco Harm Reduction (THR) presents a pragmatic and science-driven alternative.

WHO is Undermining Its Own Tobacco Control Goals

ProPakistani

For decades, the World Health Organization (WHO) has played a critical role in global tobacco control. Its warnings about the dangers of smoking have helped shape public health policy and reduce the global burden of tobacco-related diseases. But somewhere along the way, WHO’s mission seems to have blurred. Today, the same organization that once focused on ending the smoking epidemic is now lumping better alternatives such as nicotine pouches into the same category as combustible tobacco.

FDA’s War on Vapes Misses the Mark—Again

Allison Boughner, World Vapers’ Alliance

Today, FDA Commissioner Dr. Martin Makary posted on X:

“This illegal importation stops today. I personally have observed kids from good families who have become addicted to vaping. They know they’re addicted, they want to stop, and they can’t stop.”

That’s a bold statement. And also—let’s be honest—completely missing the point.

Trump Promised To ‘Save Vaping.’ His FDA Head Does Not Seem Inclined To Do That.

Jacob Sullum, Reason

During his 2024 campaign, President Donald Trump bragged that he “saved flavored vaping” during his first term and promised that he would “save vaping again.” That promise was significant in light of the de facto ban that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had imposed on vaping products in flavors other than tobacco and menthol—a policy that rejects the varieties that former smokers overwhelmingly prefer. But recent comments by Marty Makary, the Trump-appointed FDA adminstrator, cast doubt on whether he is committed to following through on the president’s commitment.

Government issues detailed opinion on France’s proposal to ban white snus

Government Offices of Sweden

The Government has decided to submit a detailed opinion on the French proposal to ban the sale and possession of white snus. The proposal is far-reaching and involves banning all products containing white snus in France, which would be a restriction of free movement in the EU Single Market.

TobaccoIntelligence Exclusive for GFN25

Global Forum on Nicotine

Poland’s plans to ban flavoured nicotine pouches raise questions about whether a wider regulatory trend is emerging across the continent, reports TobaccoIntelligence in this exclusive article for GFN25.

Poland’s Ministry of Health is pushing ahead with plans to ban flavoured nicotine pouches, alongside disposable vape products, marking another step in the country’s broader crackdown on alternative tobacco products. This move follows growing concerns that these products, particularly those with fruity and minty flavours, are increasingly appealing to younger consumers.

Two more from the Global Forum on Nicotine

WILL THE FDA CHANGE ITS APPROACH?

Lindsey Stroud joins us for the second part of our USA special exploring the FDA’s approach to safer products, and whether a change in approach is likely at the agency controlling the addition of new safer products to the market.

THE PHILOSOPHY OF TOBACCO HARM REDUCTION

In this episode of GFN News, Will Godfrey highlights a recent interview between Kiran Sidhu and renowned philosopher Dr. Sridhar Venkatapuram exploring the intersection of philosophy and public health, and the ethical support for tobacco harm reduction using safer nicotine products.

Visit Nicotine Science & Policy for more News from around the World