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Phillip Morris International company experts presented at the 15th PMI public event new scientific evidence in support of the effectiveness of modern devices that offer smokeless alternatives to classic smoking.
Dr. Moira Gilchrist, communications director of Philip Morris International, said that one of the company’s goals in recent years was a more direct approach to the advantages and particularities of the innovative alternative method to classic smoking.
According to her, the products based on heated tobacco used by PMI they have the potential to present a much lower health risk, compared to classic smoking, considering the reduced level of toxicity on smokers.
“We have the ambition to achieve a substantial decrease in the number of cigarette consumers in 2030”
“We want to see progress in every country for the good of consumers. We have the ambition that in 2030 we will achieve a substantial decrease in the number of cigarette consumers”, she said, adding that “people will not abandon smoking definitively, as if by miracle, that is why they must be given the chance of innovative, less harmful alternatives “.
“Smokers have the right to be informed about the risks and benefits of alternative products”
For his part, Christos Harpantidis, the vice-president of the external relations department of PMI, referred to the intention of some governments to ban the use of tobacco products, considering that it is quite difficult to apply such bans.
Christos Harpantidis believes that smokers have the right to be informed about the risks and benefits of alternative products to classic smoking in order to be able to choose better options for each individual.
“Government policies are driven by ideologies, not the real problems of smokers around the world, and the impact on public health can be improved,” said Harpantidis.
He reiterated that it is an opportunity to overcome certain obstacles regarding the legislative approach, taking into account the rights and preferences of the people in the respective countries.
“One billion people around the world smoke and they have the right to correct information”
Nevena Crljenko, PMI’s expert on global campaigns and partnerships, presented statistical data on the evolution of the consumption of alternative smoke-free products and emphasized that the prevalence of smoking among the population can be reduced through flexible government policies and correct consumer information, which must have access to the scientific data from the medical studies carried out so far.
“The world is facing complex challenges. A billion people around the world smoke and they have the right to correct information”, said Nevena Crljenko.
She also referred to the tobacco black market, which she considers a real danger for consumers, because they have no control over the origin and quality of the purchased products, and mentioned in the context that clear regulations are needed for the benefit of smokers.
$12 billion investment in devices that offer smoke-free alternatives
Bin Li, in charge of technological development policies within the PMI, said that 12 billion dollars were invested in research and innovation projects for optimized products that provide an alternative to classic smoking.
According to him, technological transformations have advanced a lot, in the context where more than one million devices are used annually, in accordance with the innovative policies applied to PMI products, which are based on science.
“Simplifying the way to use devices is a desire for PMI. Sustainability is a natural objective of PMI to reduce the environmental impact of electronic devices, using quality technological standards”, explained the expert.
Dr. Patrick Picavet, who leads the department that deals with strategies to reduce the medical risks associated with the use of devices that offer smokeless alternatives, emphasized that “the transition phase to products with heated and not burned tobacco is a complex and challenging process, which can reduces the medical risks associated with smoking, proven by solid scientific studies”.
The doctor also referred to the addictive potential, arguing that it can be reduced through the behavioral changes of consumers, who have the chance to reduce the level of toxicity associated with smoking with the help of innovative smoke-free alternative products.
Source: www.doctorulzilei.ro
