Vaping products continue to create some controversy and not a small amount of misinformation, with the line between hard science and anti-vaping activism often blurred. Most recently, a study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association was called into question when one of the most prominent voices in the anti-vaping community, Dr. Stanton Glantz of the University of California, San Francisco falsely claimed that vaping led to heart attacks. In the Glantz study, it was later shown that the data was flawed and that no correlation existed, with subjects actually reporting having had a heart attack long before they started vaping. The JAHA has since formally retracted the study.

Other misinformation continues to be propagated by the CDC, which advocates against vaping despite evidence that the recent incidence of lung injuries was not caused by vaping of commercial nicotine-based vaping. The FDA and the Trump administration has also taken a position against flavored vapes, again despite evidence that flavored vapes are an essential part of smoking cessation efforts on the part of responsible adults. 

Every industry has its promoters, and the vaping industry is no exception. But much as anti-vaping activists would like people to think is the case, advocates of vaping can be found among respected researchers, academics and public health organizations around the world. 

Plenty of governments, public health agencies and respected academics acknowledge the value of vaping as a less dangerous alternative to smoking, a useful tool for smoking cessation and some hospitals in London have even referred to vaping as a “public health necessity,” and British public health officials have called e-cigarettes an effective method for those who wish to quit smoking. Public Health England also published a review which said “Vaping poses only a small fraction of the risks of smoking and switching completely from smoking to vaping conveys substantial health benefits.”

Also in the UK, the National Health Service noted in a recent report that vaping has been a positive development, giving “tobacco cessation a boost at no cost to the public purse.”

Local legislation and public policy in the US are passing laws regulating or prohibiting vaping, and more specifically, prohibiting flavored e-juices, contending that it is causing a serious rise in young people vaping. But as a study led by the NYU School of Global Public Health concludes, most middle and high school students don’t vape, and of those who do, very few vape on a daily basis. 

Even the FDA, which still takes a strong anti-vaping stance, has issued a report acknowledging that the cause of vaping illnesses does not lie with commercial nicotine-based vaping juices, but rather, with vaping THC made with Vitamin E acetate as a carrier oil. Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has also looked beyond the hype and activism, and published an editorial in the Wall Street Journal arguing for e-cigarettes to be accepted as a valid alternative to smoking. In his article, Gottlieb calls for a reasonable level of FDA oversight and regulation, rather than an outright ban.

Also, an opinion column published by Vapor Authority presented a statement by the American Cancer Society which argued that vaping and e-cigarettes are “accessories to the [anti-smoking] cause, not impediments.”

May countries have acknowledged that e-cigarettes are effective for those who wish to quit smoking. In an article in The Lancet, it is noted that vaping is the most popular tool for smoking cessation in the UK. Also in France, the French High Council for Public Health also agreed that vaping is a recognized tool for reducing the risk of smoking. The French National Cancer Institute also reported that “health risks are expected to be reduced for tobacco smokers who switch to e-cigarettes.”

While the United States continues to buy into the anti-vaping hysteria perpetrated by activists rather than scientists and medical professionals, Australia is on the right track. Most recently, the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners has gotten on board and has recommended vaping as a viable tool for smoking cessation, and GPs are now recommending vaping to adult smokers who wish to quit. 

Peer-reviewed medical journals have also published important research to support vaping as an alternative to smoking, and the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine published a study of 886 adults undergoing smoking cessation treatment. In the study, participants received either nicotine gum or another traditional aid like a nicotine patch, or e-cigarettes. The study showed that those who received the e-cigarettes were less likely to go back to smoking combustible cigarettes than those who were given nicotine patches or gum. 

The evidence and support from recognized medical professionals and public health organizations in multiple countries, peer-reviewed journals and more continues to reinforce the value of vaping as a both a less harmful alternative to smoking, and a valid tool for those who wish to quit smoking combustible cigarettes. Vaping bans and legislation to restrict this valuable tool are misguided at best, and a pose a risk to public health.

Joyce Laroche