The Netherlands is urged to copy Sweden’s tobacco reduction model
A new large survey of 2,981 Dutch vapers found that the majority would smoke if e-cigarettes were not available. The study was carried out by consumer organization Acvoda and industry organization Esigbond in the Netherlands which has around 400 thousand vapers with an average age of 45. It found that three quarters of Dutch vapers would still smoke if they did not have access to e-cigarettes and also reported that nine out of ten vapers reported that they witnessed an improvement in health after switching from smoking to vaping.
The compiled data also showed that smokers had an average of 5.1 quit attempts before switching to e-cigarettes, and 63% of vapers reported switching because they wanted a less harmful alternative to smoking regular cigarettes, while 54% did so in an attempt to quit smoking. A further 46% said they believe they would not have been able to quit without the help of e-cigarettes, and 81% emphasized that the availability of flavors has played an important role in encouraging the switch.
Despite this information, local authorities are still considering a ban on vapor flavoring and interested parties had until September 28 to submit their comments to a consultation launched by the Dutch government’s proposed ban. European Tobacco Harm Reduction Advocates (ETHRA) emphasized that the proposed changes are “essentially a stealth ban on all e-liquids.”
Sweden’s status as smoke-free
At the same time, Sweden is applauded not only for reaching smoke-free status but also for recently rejecting a ban on flavourings. A chart published in May 2017 by the EU as part of a survey looking at smoking behavior across the Union lists Bulgaria, Greece and France as the countries with the highest smoking rates at 36%, 35% and 33% respectively. While at the bottom of this list were the Netherlands, Denmark and the UK, all with 16%, and finally Sweden, with an impressive 5%.
Sweden is known to have reached this status thanks to adopting a harm reduction strategy in favor of a prohibition stance, by supporting the use of snus to quit smoking. Snus is a moist powdered tobacco product that is placed under the upper lip for longer periods of time.
The product is most popular in Sweden, Denmark and Norway, but it is only legal in Sweden where it is considered an effective tobacco reduction product. Snus has actually not only led Sweden to have the lowest smoking rates in Europe, but more importantly, also to report the lowest rates of lung cancer across the continent.
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