World Vape Day: A Public Health Opportunity We Cannot Afford to Miss

By Professor Heino Stöver, Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences

As we mark World Vape Day on 30 May, it is time for policymakers and public health professionals to confront an inconvenient truth: millions of lives could be saved if we embraced vaping as a legitimate harm reduction tool.(1)

Tobacco harm reduction (THR) offers an evidence-based pathway out of combustible tobacco use. For people who struggle to quit nicotine altogether, non-combustible products such as e-cigarettes are dramatically less harmful than smoking. The UK’s leading health agency, Public Health England, has repeatedly concluded that vaping is at least 95% less harmful than smoking (2) —a landmark finding that should guide policy worldwide.

That conclusion is not an outlier. The Cochrane systematic review (3), the global benchmark in evidence evaluation, has found high-certainty evidence that nicotine-containing e-cigarettes are more effective than traditional nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) in supporting smoking cessation.

The real-world data backs this up. In countries that have supported vaping through balanced regulation—most notably the United Kingdom and New Zealand—adult smoking rates have fallen significantly, with vaping playing a central role in accelerating the decline. These are not speculative outcomes; they are observable public health gains that should be celebrated and replicated (4).

And yet, too often, vaping is met with fear, misinformation, and misguided policy. Rather than encourage the switch away from deadly tobacco products, some governments are pushing excessive restrictions or bans that risk pushing people back to smoking.

We need a smarter path forward—one guided by science, compassion, and pragmatism. That is why I endorse the RESET (5) framework for regulating safer nicotine alternatives:

• Risk-proportionate regulation that incentivises switching from the most harmful products
• Ensuring intended adult use through responsible marketing and sales restrictions
• Safety and quality standards that give consumers confidence
• Environmental sustainability in manufacturing and disposal
• Traceability to support tax, age verification, and illicit trade prevention

This World Vape Day, let us move beyond outdated thinking and embrace evidence-based regulation that prioritises public health outcomes over ideology. We have the tools to drive down smoking further. What we need now is the political will to use them.