E-cigarettes increase harm to smokers, so should not be promoted as a harm reduction strategy (in 10 slides) now available in 10 other languages

My blog post “E-cigarettes increase harm to smokers, so should not be promoted as a harm reduction strategy (in 10 slides)” has attracted a lot of interest, so I have translated it into 10 other languages. Click below to download. These translations were done with Powerpoint. If native speakers have suggestions for improvement, feel free toContinue reading “E-cigarettes increase harm to smokers, so should not be promoted as a harm reduction strategy (in 10 slides) now available in 10 other languages”

How e-cigarettes compromise children’s human rights

The new paper “How e-cigarettes compromise children’s human rights” by Tom Gatehouse and colleagues provides more evidence to inform e-cigarette policy making by reminding the delegates to the FCTC Conference of the Parties next week that they need to prioritize protecting kids over any “harm reduction” benefits for adults that the tobacco industry claims forContinue reading “How e-cigarettes compromise children’s human rights”

Juul’s Connection to ‘Independent’ Expert Farsalinos Revealed

Greek cardiologist Konstantinos Farsalinos has been one of the e-cigarette industry’s most consistent supporters. Despite his behavior having all the hallmarks of undisclosed industry ties, until now no one was able to prove it. Now, using the Juul documents in the UCSF Industry documents library, investigators from The Examination, Le Monde (in English, in French)Continue reading “Juul’s Connection to ‘Independent’ Expert Farsalinos Revealed”

E-cigarettes increase harm to smokers, so should not be promoted as a harm reduction strategy (in 10 slides)

The tobacco industry has used claims of reduced harm to sell its products since the 1950s with its efforts to promote “safe cigarettes.” “Harm reduction” claims have been central to marketing of e-cigarettes since they were commercialized in 2003.  The tobacco industry and its allies continue to use claims of reduced harm to argue againstContinue reading “E-cigarettes increase harm to smokers, so should not be promoted as a harm reduction strategy (in 10 slides)”

In UK 7 times more 16-17 year olds smoking than if there had been no e-cigs

Jessica Mongilio and colleagues just published an innovative approach to assessing the association between e-cigarette use and smoking, the so-called gateway effect, that provides insights between the link between e-cigs and smoking and how it relates to changes in youth smoking prevalence over time. In their new paper “Risk of adolescent cigarette use in threeContinue reading “In UK 7 times more 16-17 year olds smoking than if there had been no e-cigs”

UCSF launches new improved Industry Documents Library

Today the UCSF Industry Documents Library launched a complete redesign of the website that aligns with evolving institutional and user research needs and delivers a new and improved user experience. What’s new? Save the date – On Tuesday, September 9, 1:30 p.m. ET/10:30 a.m. PT UCSF is hosting a live website open house and Q&AContinue reading “UCSF launches new improved Industry Documents Library”

FDA ignores current science to give Juul a pass

Not surprisingly, on July 17, 2025, FDA authorized the sale of Juul tobacco and menthol e-cigarettes.  I wish I could say that I am “not surprised” because during the 2024 campaign President Trump announced that he would “save vaping,” but, on reading FDA’s scientific justification (the Technical Product Lead report [TPL]), I found that theContinue reading “FDA ignores current science to give Juul a pass”

New WHO report details progress and problems in global tobacco control

In June 2025 the WHO released its new comprehensive WHO report on the global tobacco epidemic, 2025: Warning about the dangers of tobacco. The report contains detailed country-specific analysis and statistics about progress in reducing tobacco use, policies, and industry opposition. It is a valuable reference document. It recognizes that Overall, while progress since 2007Continue reading “New WHO report details progress and problems in global tobacco control”

Global Action to End Smoking (formerly Foundation for a Smoke Free World) lays off CEO Cliff Douglas

In October 2023 Philip Morris International’s Foundation for a Smoke Free World hired Cliff Douglas as its new CEO (Wikipedia entry). FSFW was the latest in a long string of “third party” organizations created and funded by the tobacco industry to support its political needs, in this case to promote what the industry calls “smokeContinue reading “Global Action to End Smoking (formerly Foundation for a Smoke Free World) lays off CEO Cliff Douglas”

“Hard core” smokers are melting away in response to established tobacco control policies

The whole argument for promoting e-cigarettes, heated tobacco and other “potentially reduced risk” tobacco products is built on the assumption that there is a “hard-core” of smokers who “cannot or will not quit” using established smoking cessation therapies or in response to population level tobacco control interventions (e.g., clean indoor air laws, media campaigns, orContinue reading ““Hard core” smokers are melting away in response to established tobacco control policies”