Vapers Helping Smokers to Quit

Vapers Helping Smokers to Quit

Dr Christopher Russell

Hi everyone, if e-cigarettes have helped you to quit smoking, I’m writing to ask for your help.

Later this week I’m travelling to Delhi, India to take part in discussions at the World Health Organisation’s COP7 on e-cigarettes. As you may know, the WHO recently recommended that governments adopt policies that would restrict the accessibility, affordability and attractiveness of e-cigarettes to smokers who want to quit. For what good it may do, my colleagues (Dr Riccardo Polosa and Dr Konstantinos Farsalinos) and I are going to Delhi to make the health case for why governments should incorporate tobacco harm reduction into their tobacco control policy. We will do this by summarising for policy makers an ever-growing body of evidence that indicates (i) the life expectancy of today’s smokers can be radically improved by enabling and encouraging them to switch to a smoke-free source of nicotine, such as e-cigarettes; (ii) e-cigarettes can be effective for helping people to quit smoking and avoid relapse; and (iii) regular use of a nicotine-containing e-cigarette is almost exclusively confined to people who currently smoke or used to smoke.

So what am I asking from you? I run a YouTube channel called “Vapers Helping Smokers to Quit”. The channel features short (3-minute) videos from real people from around the world who have quit smoking by using e-cigarettes. The purpose of the channel is to give these people an outlet to tell their story of how they quit smoking, and to inform and advise smokers who may be thinking of using an e-cigarette to help them quit smoking.

I plan to play some of these videos for policy makers in Delhi to show them how e-cigarettes have helped people to quit smoking, and more importantly, to show them who would be hurt by policies that restrict access to e-cigarettes.

So, if you have quit smoking by using an e-cigarette and you’d like to submit a video to our channel telling your own story, I’d be extremely grateful if you would send an email to vapershelpingsmokers@gmail.com and I’ll reply with instructions on who to submit your video. I would need you submit your video before Saturday in order for me to play your video for people in India.

In essence, I have a platform, but I need YOU to be the voice of all people who have benefited from e-cigarettes being available, affordable, and enjoyable to use.

And of course, if you know anyone who smokes and wants more info and advice about e-cigarettes straight from people who have used e-cigarettes to successfully quit smoking, tell them to come watch our videos.

Thanks! I hope to hear from lots of you.

Dr Christopher Russell

Originally posted on Facebook 1st Nov. 2016

https://www.facebook.com/groups/casaamembers/permalink/1122450767792769/

Reproduced here for the benefit of non Facebook users.