The World Health Organization (WHO) made a strong request to governments worldwide on Thursday, December 13, asking them to treat e-cigarettes as equally harmful as tobacco. They also urged for a ban on all flavors of e-cigarettes.
Some governments and experts believed that e-cigarettes, also known as vapes, could be important substitutes for regular cigarettes containing nicotine. They thought these could help decrease the number of deaths and diseases caused by smoking.
The UN also pointed out that vapes were dangerous for health and could make non-smokers, particularly kids and young people, more addicted to nicotine.
The report highlighted that youngsters between 13 and 15 years old used e-cigarettes more than adults across all regions, largely influenced by aggressive advertising.
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General, emphasized the worry about young people being lured into using e-cigarettes and potentially getting addicted to nicotine. He urged countries to take strict measures to prevent this and safeguard their citizens, particularly children and young adults.
Why are e-cigarettes harmful to health?
E-cigarettes containing nicotine are highly addictive and harmful to health. Not only do they cause long-term health issues, but they also produce toxic substances, some of which are linked to causing cancer and raising the risk of heart and lung problems.
The WHO stated that using e-cigarettes might lead to learning problems and significantly affect the development of the brain. Pregnant women using these devices could harm the development of their unborn babies.
Dr. Ruediger Krech, WHO’s Director for Health Promotion, highlighted that e-cigarettes were targeting young people through social media and influencers. These products, with over 16,000 flavors, often used attractive designs and even cartoon characters, enticing the younger generation. This led to a worrying increase in e-cigarette use among children and young people, surpassing the rates of adult usage in many countries.