Imperial Tobacco is two weeks into a campaign to promote vaping as an alternative to smoking under the slogan “Let’s clear the smoke.”
Canadians may be surprised to see Health Canada statements spotlighted in a tobacco company media blitz and wonder, “Is someone blowing smoke, and if so, who?”
At clearthesmoke.ca, visitors will learn that “Many health authorities and experts recognize vaping as less harmful than smoking. However, the interpretation of the information can be confusing and misleading.”
A cascade of quotes from international health authorities, research papers, and government policy toward vaping in the U.K., New Zealand and Sweden follows, promising to address that confusion. Every reference is linked to its source.
A Royal Society of Health (RSH) quote proclaims, “vaping is at least 95% less harmful than smoking” and “is helping increasing numbers of smokers to quit,” for example.
Clicking through, sure enough, the RSH describes a Public Health England report estimating at least 20,000 smokers successfully quit per year thanks to vaping, “a striking illustration of (e-cigarettes’) potential value to the public’s health.”
Next, a German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment quote, “e-cigarettes are less harmful than conventional tobacco products when used as intended.”
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