{"id":9458,"date":"2026-03-16T13:32:54","date_gmt":"2026-03-16T12:32:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/snusforumet.se\/?p=9458"},"modified":"2026-03-16T13:33:56","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T12:33:56","slug":"researchers-fuming-over-eu-health-commissioners-nicotine-misinformation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/snusforumet.se\/en\/researchers-fuming-over-eu-health-commissioners-nicotine-misinformation\/","title":{"rendered":"Researchers fuming over EU health commissioner’s nicotine misinformation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A group of leading European academics and medical researchers has publicly challenged what they describe as \u201cfalse and misleading\u201d statements by EU Health Commissioner Oliv\u00e9r V\u00e1rhelyi about the risks of smoke-free nicotine products. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an open letter<\/a> to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, 23 experts from more than a dozen countries warn that the Commissioner\u2019s claims could undermine public health policy and mislead millions of smokers across Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe urge you to take action to prevent further loss of trust and confidence in the European Union,\u201d the experts plead in the letter, dated 25 February 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The authors go on to express deep concern about repeated statements from V\u00e1rhelyi suggesting that non-combustible tobacco alternatives such as vaping, heated tobacco, and nicotine pouches are as harmful as cigarettes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the researchers, the claim isn\u2019t supported by scientific evidence and risks distorting EU policy discussions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe write to express our concern about recent statements by Commissioner V\u00e1rhelyi regarding the safety of nicotine products,\u201d the scientists state. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese statements amount to spreading damaging misinformation.*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018As harmful as cigarettes\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The letter highlights a December 2025 interview V\u00e1rhelyi gave to the Euractiv news site<\/a> during which he was asked whether he believed alternative tobacco products were as harmful as smoking. His response was unequivocal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYes, I am. Absolutely. One hundred per cent,\u201d the Commissioner is quoted as saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The researchers say such claims ignore a large body of evidence showing that smoke-free nicotine products expose users to far fewer harmful chemicals than combustible cigarettes. While they emphasise that these products are not risk-free, they argue that equating them with smoking is scientifically inaccurate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is an important difference between safe and safer,\u201d the letter explains. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSmoke-free products do not have to be \u2018safe\u2019 to be far \u2018safer\u2019 than cigarettes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The signatories include prominent scientists and public health experts from institutions such as Imperial College London, Queen Mary University of London, KU Leuven, and the University of Geneva. Among them are well-known researchers in addiction science and tobacco harm reduction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Public health concerns<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The scientists warn that misleading communication about nicotine risks could have serious consequences. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They reference the European Union\u2019s own health data<\/a>, which finds that smoking remains the EU\u2019s leading preventable cause of death, responsible for roughly 700,000 deaths every year, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If policymakers treat all nicotine products as equally harmful, the researchers argue, smokers may be discouraged from switching away from cigarettes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is no scientific basis for claiming that smoke-free nicotine products have risks comparable to cigarettes,\u201d the letter states. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Policies based on that assumption, the researchers warn, \u201ccould discourage smokers from switching away from the most dangerous form of nicotine consumption.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The experts also caution that misinformation at the highest political levels could affect upcoming EU legislation, including revisions to the Tobacco Products Directive and debates around nicotine taxation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Call for evidence-based policymaking<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The researchers\u2019 criticism of V\u00e1rhelyi echoes concerns expressed previously by harm reduction advocate Martin Cullip in an opinion article published by Snusforumet in January 2026<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He accused the Health Commissioner of crossing from \u201cignorance into recklessness\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen a Health Commissioner insists that safer alternatives are no safer at all, he is not merely wrong. He is dangerous,\u201d Cullip wrote, arguing V\u00e1rhelyi should be sacked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While stopping short of calling for the Health Commissioner\u2019s ouster, the scientists urge the European Commission to correct the record and ensure that future policymaking reflects the best available evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are concerned that it will damage public health, compromise the European Union\u2019s policymaking, and erode the European Union\u2019s credibility,\u201d the authors write. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They add that more than 100 million tobacco and nicotine users in the EU \u201cshould expect better\u201d from policymakers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For advocates of tobacco harm reduction, the dispute highlights a growing tension in EU policy debates: whether regulations should recognise the large differences in risk between combustible cigarettes and smoke-free nicotine products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The researchers\u2019 message to Brussels is clear: public health decisions should be guided by evidence, not rhetoric.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A group of leading European academics and medical researchers has publicly challenged what they describe as \u201cfalse and misleading\u201d statements by EU Health Commissioner Oliv\u00e9r…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9255,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[254],"tags":[258,349,251,296,655],"class_list":["post-9458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-opinions","tag-eu-2","tag-european-commission","tag-harm-reduction-2","tag-nicotine-2","tag-oliver-varhelyi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nResearchers fuming over EU health commissioner's nicotine misinformation - Snusforumet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A group of academics and researchers have accused EU Health Commissioner Oliv\u00e9r V\u00e1rhelyi of \u201cfalse and misleading\u201d statements about nicotine.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/snusforumet.se\/en\/researchers-fuming-over-eu-health-commissioners-nicotine-misinformation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Researchers fuming over EU health commissioner's nicotine misinformation - 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