tobacco companies funded studies that downplayed the harm from vaping – Kommersant

Tobacco companies funded research that downplayed the risk of vaping, including among children and teenagers, and also supported social movements that lobbied the interests of tobacco manufacturers. Writes about this The Timeswhich conducted its own investigation.

According to the publication, paid studies were used by tobacco companies as an argument against the introduction of strict regulations on vaping in the UK. One example is articles by researcher Peter Lee that questioned the findings of other scientists who believed that vaping increases the likelihood of switching to regular cigarettes. As the newspaper notes, Mr. Lee worked closely with tobacco companies, some of his articles were co-authored with employees of Philip Morris International (PMI).

In addition, the tobacco giants paid doctors, scientists and “independent” activist groups who fought against vaping restrictions. Hundreds of doctors have attended training sessions on how to stop smoking by switching to vaping, run by a doctor who received millions of pounds from PMI, according to The Times. And this case was not the only one.

Another tobacco company, British American Tobacco, actively participated in the creation of the World Vaping Alliance, which also lobbied for vaping and published a specialized magazine. According to The Times, another movement, “For a Smoke-Free World,” promoting vaping instead of cigarettes, was created with the support of PMI and received about $400 million from the company.

Experts say vaping is becoming increasingly common among children and teenagers in the UK. According to the results of one of researchin 2023, 20.5% of Britons under 18 have tried vaping – compared to 15.8% in 2022 and 13.9% in 2020.

Read about how the Russian authorities are going to limit the spread of electronic cigarettes in the Kommersant publication. “There is no taste or color of vape”.

Yana Rozhdestvenskaya