A World Health Organization (WHO) report says ‘legal steps should be taken’ to end e-cigarette usage inside public and work places.
 
The report entitled ‘Electronic nicotine delivery systems’, of which electronic cigarettes are the most common has been prepared for the sixth Conference of the Parties (COP) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO/FCTC). This is being held between 13-18 October in Moscow.
 
But some tobacco companies believe that effectively banning the use of e-cigarettes indoors without any scientific proof that they pose any danger to others is not only unfair, but exposes WHO to criticism for having a prejudiced political agenda on the issue [the ’nanny’ factor many refer to].
 
Having said that, the report does acknowledge that e-cigarettes and similar devices are frequently marketed by manufacturers as aids to quit smoking and/or as healthier alternatives to tobacco, but it states that they still require ‘global regulation in the interest of public health’.
 
WHO says: “The report states that while e-cigarettes represent an ‘evolving frontier filled with promise and threat for tobacco control,’ regulations are needed to impede e-cigarette promotion to non-smokers and young people; minimize potential health risks to e-cigarette users and non-users; prohibit unproven health claims about e-cigarettes; and protect existing tobacco control efforts from commercial and other vested interests of the tobacco industry.”
 
WHO WANTS TO REGULATE
In addition, WHO adds that ‘additional research is needed’ on multiple areas of e-cigarette use and  ‘regulations are required now to address health concerns’, as it explains.
 
“Advertising: An appropriate government body must restrict e-cigarette advertising, promotion and sponsorship, to ensure that it does not target youth and non-smokers or people who do not currently use nicotine.
 
“Indoor use: legal steps should be taken to end use of e-cigarettes indoors in public and work places. Evidence suggests that exhaled e-cigarette aerosol increases the background air level of some toxicants, nicotine and particles.
 
“Since 2005, the e-cigarette industry has grown from one manufacturer in China to an estimated US$3 billion global business with 466 brands, a market in which the tobacco industry is taking a greater stake. The report highlights WHO’s concern about the role of the tobacco industry in this market.”
 
The Report on e-cigarettes to WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control can be found by clicking here: http://apps.who.int/gb/fctc/PDF/cop6/FCTC_COP6_10-en.pdf?ua=1