Vapes cannot be recommended as way to stop smoking as too little is known about the harms and benefits, bosses at the World Health Organization (WHO) have said.
The global body’s ruling runs counter to NHS advice which says the devices are an effective way to quit the habit, which is one of the biggest causes of illness and death in the UK.
In world-first guidance setting out possible interventions to help people stop using tobacco products, the WHO labelled the evidence around e-cigarettes as ‘complex’.
Vapes ‘may’ be recommended as a smoking cessation aid ‘in the future as evidence accumulates’, it added.
Instead, health chiefs should back ‘behavioural’ support like counselling or smartphone apps and nicotine replacement therapy to get people to quit tobacco.
Currently, the NHS recommends the devices as a healthier way to stop the habit, which is one of the biggest causes of illness and death in the UK. Yet, in world-first guidance setting out interventions to help people quit, the UN agency labelled e-cigarettes ‘complex’
The WHO’s newly published document states: ‘E-cigarettes are beyond the scope of this guideline because the potential benefits and harms of using these products are complex, and are addressed in a separate body of literature.
‘These products may be addressed in the future as evidence accumulates.’
The NHS, however, says e-cigarettes are far less harmful and can help people quit smoking for good.
Responding to the release, Dr Rüdiger Krech, director of health promotion at WHO, added: ‘The immense struggle that people face when trying to quit smoking cannot be overstated.
‘We need to deeply appreciate the strength it takes and the suffering endured by individuals and their loved ones to overcome this addiction.
‘These guidelines are designed to help communities and governments provide the best possible support and assistance for those on this challenging journey.’
This latest ruling is just the latest in a series of statements and ruling against vapes made by the WHO
The UN agency last year called for all flavored vapes to be banned worldwide and treated similarly to cigarettes.
At the time, the WHO said ‘urgent measures’ were needed to control their sales and warned the devices could drive nicotine addiction in non-smokers.
It was also slammed by fact-checkers for claiming vaping can cause a seizure within 24 hours earlier this year.
E-cigs allow people to inhale nicotine in a vapour — which is produced by heating a liquid, which typically contains propylene glycol, glycerine, flavourings, and other chemicals.
Unlike traditional cigarettes, they do not contain tobacco, nor do they produce tar or carbon — two of the most dangerous elements.
Nicotine’s effect on the brain is well known — within 20 seconds of inhalation, it triggers the release of chemical messengers such as dopamine, associated with reward and pleasure.
But it also increases heart rate and blood pressure and makes blood vessels constrict. This is because nicotine triggers the release of the hormone adrenaline.
Campaigners have long blamed predatory manufacturers for the ever-growing crisis, claiming they are intentionally luring kids in with colourful packaging, compared to highlighter pens, and child-friendly flavours such as bubblegum and cotton candy
As of February, a total of 1,009 reactions to vapes have been recorded by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. Here are the 10 most common reports
Despite NHS chiefs insisting it is safer than smoking, vaping is not risk-free. E-cigarettes contain harmful toxins and their long-term effects remains a mystery.
Experts are concerned the high nicotine content might increase blood pressure and cause other heart problems.
Doctors have expressed fears there could be a wave of lung disease, dental issues and even cancer in the coming decades in people who took up the habit at a young age.
In April, one shock study warned that e-cigarettes may raise the risk of heart failure.
Another suggested vaping triggers cell changes which may go on to cause cancer.
Earlier this year, MailOnline also discovered the number of adverse side effects linked to vaping reported to UK regulators has now eclipsed 1,000, with five of them fatal.
The extensive list includes everything from headaches to strokes. Members of the public and medics can submit them.
The nicotine-filled gadgets have also seen a surge in popularity among youngsters.
A shocking MailOnline investigation last year even uncovered vapes resembling sweets and high street stores selling the devices next to chocolate and fruit gummies
Figures show how the proportion of kids using e-cigarettes has exploded amid the decline of traditional smoking, with more than a third of 16 to 18-year-olds now regularly inhaling them.
For comparison, less than one in 10 were doing so a decade ago.
This is despite sales of vapes to under-18s being banned, with anyone caught flogging them to children threatened with fines and prosecution by Trading Standards.
Campaigners have long blamed predatory manufacturers for the ever-growing crisis, claiming they are intentionally luring kids in with colourful packaging, compared to highlighter pens, and child-friendly flavours such as bubblegum and cotton candy.
In efforts to stamp out the UK’s child vaping epidemic, Rishi Sunak last year pledged to ban disposable e-cigs completely.
Such devices – loved by kids – were expected to be outlawed by early 2025.
Under the Prime Minister’s wider crackdown, vapes were expected to be limited to four flavours, sold in plain, tobacco-style packaging and displayed out of sight of kids.
But July’s general election has now quashed any hopes of the historic bill passing before this Parliament.
Both Germany and Ireland have outlined their own proposals to place restrictions on vapes, with Berlin chiefs currently considering an outright ban on disposable e-cigs.
Separately, Australia has put in place measures to make vapes available only to those who have prescriptions.
Meanwhile, New Zealand has also set out restrictions that ban vape shops from being within 300 metres of a school and which ensure all vapes must have removable batteries.
While the potential long-term dangers of vapes are still undecided smoking the evidence that smoking harms your health is well established.
An estimated 76,000 people die every year from smoking-related health problems, including heart disease, strokes and cancer in the UK.
Everything you need to know about e-cigarettes
How much nicotine is in an e-cigarette?
There are many different brands of e-cigarettes, containing various different nicotine levels.
The legal amount of nicotine in an e-liquid capacity in the UK is 20mg/ml equating to between 600 and 800 puffs.
The Elf Bar 600, one of Britain’s most popular vapes, is advertised as coming in nicotine strengths of 0mg, 10mg and 20mg.
How many cigarettes are ‘in’ an e-cigarette?
The Elf Bar 600 contains the equivalent to 48 cigarettes, analysts say.
It delivers 600 puffs before it needs to be thrown away, meaning, in theory, every 12.5 puffs equate to one cigarette.
Experts say for many e-cigarettes, 100 puffs equate to ten normal cigarettes.
Elf Bars are a brand of e-cigarettes often sold in snazzy colours and with child-friendly names and flavours, like blue razz lemonade and green gummy bear
Is vaping better for your health than cigarettes?
Vaping products are considered to be better than cigarettes as users are exposed to fewer toxins and at lower levels, according to the NHS.
The health service adds that vaping instead of smoking cigarettes reduces your exposure to toxins that can cause cancer, lung disease and diseases of the heart and circulation, such as strokes and heart attacks.
Public Health England, which is now defunct, published an expert independent review in 2015 concluding that e-cigarettes are around 95 per cent less harmful than cigarettes.
However vaping is not risk-free, as while levels in tobacco-products are much higher, e-cigarettes still contain harmful toxins, according to a study by researchers from the Medical University of Silesia in Poland.
And Dr Onkar Mudhar, a London dentist who posts videos on TikTok, said Elf bars can cause gum inflammation, swelling and bleeding.
He said this is because nicotine dries out your mouth and reduces saliva, causing irritation from a build-up of bacteria and food that can’t get washed away.
Nearly 350 hospitalisations due to vaping were logged in England in 2022, which are thought to be mainly down to respiratory problems, such as shortness of breath, chest pain, lung inflammation and, in severe cases, respiratory failure.
