On the sidelines of the 10th Conference of the Parties (COP10): One of the Authors of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Criticizes the WHO, Describing its Data as Misleading

(MENAFN- Asdaa BCW) Dr. Clive Bates, the former Director of Action on Smoking and Health (UK) and a key figure in the development of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, as well as the founder of the Framework Convention Alliance (now Global Alliance for Tobacco Control), strongly criticized the World Health Organization (WHO). He accused the organization of relying on misleading data that, if acted upon, would do more harm than good.
Dr. Bates' attack on the WHO coincides with the launch of the 10th Conference of the Parties (COP10) to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), which is currently taking place in Panama and will continue until February 9, 2024.
Bates commented on the WHO’s conference agenda, expressing his concern over the organization’s focus on the fact that 8 million deaths occur annually, with smoking or secondhand smoke being the primary cause (99.4%). However, he believes that the WHO missed an opportunity to address smoking by promoting the switch to safer, smoke-free tobacco and nicotine products. He added that the WHO wrongly portrays these products as a threat. He explained that the first paper by the World Health Organization attempts to distort tobacco policy by using a false definition to misclassify heated tobacco products as smoked tobacco products. Additionally, it classifies the heated tobacco aerosol as “smoke,” despite the fact that smoke is a product of combustion. On the contrary, heated tobacco products do not involve combustion when operating as intended and are chemically, qualitatively, and quantitatively distinct from traditional cigarettes.
He continued to explain that the second paper also has multiple defects. For instance, it discusses the insufficient evidence that proves that these products are less harmful than others. While it is true that the level of some harmful chemicals in the aerosols produced by alternative tobacco products is lower than in cigarette smoke harm-reduction products’ emissions generally contain far less compounds than tobacco smoke. On average, they exhibit a 90% reduction in harmful chemicals.
Dr. Bates emphasized that this issue was examined in court in Germany in 2021 and Sweden in 2022. The courts have concluded that heated tobacco products should not be classified as traditional smoking products. Additionally, he highlighted that transitioning to alternative tobacco products can greatly reduce the health risks associated with smoking. This reduction in health risks forms the basis for the US FDA’s authorization of these products in the markets
He also clarified that the WHO primarily dismisses the claim that most of the studies have been conducted by tobacco product companies. However, simply dismissing this evidence is unscientific and either naive or cynical. It is important to emphasize that the WHO and tobacco control activists have played a role in denying millions of smokers access to potentially life-saving, low-risk alternatives to cigarettes. This has been achieved through prohibition, regulation, and misinformation, despite the lack of scientific or ethical justification for such actions.

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