The World's Top Scientists Just Issued a Surprising Statement on E-Cigarettes

The World's Top Scientists Just Issued a Surprising Statement on E-Cigarettes:

Via: Mic.com

The news: Fifty-three scientists have written to the UN’s World Health Organization Director General Margaret Chan cautioning her not to classify e-cigarettes as tobacco products, which would then lead to stricter regulatory controls on the nascent industry.
The scientists say that e-cigarettes are “part of the solution” to worldwide tobacco addiction.
"These products could be among the most significant health innovations of the 21st century — perhaps saving hundreds of millions of lives. The urge to control and suppress them as tobacco products should be resisted," they said.
"Policies should be evidence-based and proportionate to risk, and give due weight to the significant reductions in risk that are achieved when a smoker switches to a low risk nicotine product."
Leaked documents demonstrate that the WHO views electronic cigarettes as a “threat” to global health and desires to classify them as regular tobacco products under the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC); 178 countries are party to the agreement, and regulation could threaten some of the $3 billion in worldwide sales posted in 2013. Big Tobacco for once is backing the scientists, insisting the devices allow smokers to have a less-risky alternative. (Major cigarette companies, of course, see e-cigarettes as both a major potential competitor and the future of the industry.)

http://ift.tt/1x12oDE February 02, 2015 at 08:56PM GrimmGreen.com http://ift.tt/177rnJE http://ift.tt/eA8V8J