Stories
Experts: Clinical Support, Science-Based Policies Crucial for Quitting Smoking
N
News18•04-10-2026, 14:15
Experts: Clinical Support, Science-Based Policies Crucial for Quitting Smoking
- •Experts emphasize that telling smokers to quit is insufficient; clinical support for tobacco dependence is vital.
- •The 9th Summit on Tobacco Harm Reduction discussed tobacco dependence, cessation, nicotine use, and evidence-based policies.
- •Dr. Mohsin Wali highlights the difference between advising smokers to quit and actively helping them overcome dependence.
- •Neal L Benowitz stresses distinguishing nicotine's pharmacological effects from the broader harms of tobacco burning.
- •Experts advocate for combining prevention, protection, and stronger cessation support, responsive to scientific evidence.
Key Questions Answered
The 9th Summit on Tobacco Harm Reduction focused on tobacco dependence, smoking cessation, nicotine use among young people, and the role of scientific evidence in shaping tobacco-control policies.
Experts emphasized that nicotine is not synonymous with cigarette smoking, noting that understanding health effects requires distinguishing the pharmacological effects of nicotine from the much broader harms caused by tobacco burning.
Experts recommended that public health policies should evolve with emerging scientific evidence, combine prevention and cessation support, protect young people from nicotine initiation, and be reviewed periodically.
