Tobacco Harm Reduction is a public health strategy that encourages people who smoke to switch to safer nicotine products —such as e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches, snus, or heated tobacco—rather than continuing to smoke cigarettes.
Source: Royal College of Physicians (2016), Nicotine without smoke: Tobacco harm reduction.
No product is 100% risk-free. However, evidence shows that safer nicotine products carry significantly fewer health risks compared to smoking, because they deliver nicotine without the combustion of tobacco, which produces most of the deadly toxins.
Source: Public Health England (2018), Evidence review of e-cigarettes and heated tobacco products.
Independent expert reviews consistently estimate that vaping is at least 95% less harmful than smoking.
Source: Public Health England (2015, 2018).
Nicotine is addictive, but it is not the primary cause of smoking-related disease. The main harms from smoking come from tar and toxic chemicals released by burning tobacco.
Source: Cancer Research UK (2023)
Yes. Studies show that e-cigarettes and other SNPs can help smokers quit when other methods fail. In fact, e-cigarettes are more effective than nicotine replacement therapy (patches, gums) in randomized clinical trials.
Source: Hajek P. et al. (2019), NEJM, “A Randomized Trial of E-Cigarettes versus Nicotine-Replacement Therapy.”
Yes. In many countries, SNPs are regulated for safety, product quality, and marketing restrictions. The extent of regulation varies, and in some countries safer alternatives are banned, which limits access for smokers who could benefit.
Source: WHO FCTC, Global progress reports on implementation.
There is no evidence that flavors are designed to target children. Flavors play a key role in helping adults switch away from smoking, as they make vaping and other alternatives more appealing compared to cigarettes.
Yes. The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) explicitly includes harm reduction in its definition of tobacco control (Article 1d). This means that offering safer alternatives is consistent with global tobacco control policy.
Source: WHO FCTC, Article 1(d).
Africa is one of the regions with rising tobacco use. Many smokers cannot quit with traditional methods. THR provides a practical, evidence-based solution to reduce smoking-related deaths and diseases.
Source: WHO Global Report on Trends in Prevalence of Tobacco Use (2021).