Public Health Wales has today (26 January) published its updated position statement providing advice to the public about the potential impacts of e-cigarettes on health.
The updated advice says that, for children and young people and non-smoking adults, the use of e-cigarettes is likely to be harmful to health.
Current smokers who want to quit are advised to find out about the range of help available to them and choose the approach that is best for them. This help includes proven NHS services like Stop Smoking Wales and community pharmacies.
The advice for committed smokers who can’t or won’t quit is that switching completely to e-cigarettes will significantly benefit their health.
Dr Julie Bishop, Director of Health Improvement for Public Health Wales, said:
“We recognise that there are a lot of confusing and contradictory messages around e-cigarettes. This is because there isn’t one simple answer – it is different for different groups of the population.
“In simple terms, if you don’t smoke, don’t vape. But if you are a committed smoker who is unwilling or unable to quit, switching completely to e-cigarettes will be beneficial to your health.”
Public Health Wales is committed to a smoke-free and nicotine-free Wales in the longer term.
The new position statement was approved at a meeting of the Public Health Wales Board today.