Impact of the WHO FCTC on non-cigarette tobacco products

Abstract

The FCTC provided a framework that applies to all forms of tobacco and this encouraged some parties to adopt control measures against NCTP and to incorporate them into their national tobacco control plans. Although a number of countries have adopted measures specifically targeted towards smokeless and waterpipe tobacco, greater global progress is needed. The strongest achievements have been in protection from exposure to tobacco smoke; controlling advertising, promotion and sponsorship; controlling sales to and by minors; education, communication and public awareness; and packaging and labelling of NCTP. Countries which adopted broad definitions of tobacco products have demonstrated encouraging trends in curbing their use. Future work should address the deep-rooted social acceptance of NCTP, the laxity in their control, their exclusion from regulations in some countries and the failure to subject them to increased taxation. Control measures should also specifically target the initiation risk to youth and adolescents and all factors that contribute to that such as banning flavourings and promotions through social media. Stronger global surveillance of NCTP use, tracking of policy implementation and evaluation of policy impact will provide important evidence to assist parties in fully implementing the FCTC to control their use.

Worldwide Experienced Policy and Management Interventions in Preventing and Controlling Water Pipe Smoking

“…According to the selected studies, the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is a global treaty enacting the actions to control all tobacco products [63]. However, there has been rare focus on controlling cigarettes and WP-specific actions in the world, and it has been applied to some treaty articles [24,[64][65]. It is obvious that using the proposed actions by the FCTC to manage WPS can lead to a progress in WPS prevention and control.…”

A comparison of methods to measure daily cigarillo consumption among adolescents and young adults

“…Non-cigarette tobacco products are gaining popularity worldwide, and are often perceived as less hazardous than cigarettes 2 35. Accurate measurement of consumption of these products is critical for tobacco control policies, which currently lag behind those of cigarettes 1. In a changing tobacco landscape, it is important for measures to be responsive to different products, and to potential differences in patterns of use.…”

“…Current conventional measures of combustible tobacco consumption are borne out of cigarette research. Globally, the use of a variety of non-cigarette forms of tobacco is widespread, particularly among young people, and is increasing 1–3. This multiplicity of products presents a challenge for the accurate measurement of tobacco consumption because use patterns may vary considerably from those for cigarettes.…”

Has FDA abandoned its efforts to make fake-cigar cigarettes comply with federal tobacco control laws that apply to cigarettes but not cigars?

“…Only the guidelines for articles 9 and 10, and article 11 mention cigars (once each)56; and none of the eight FCTC guidelines issued to date define either cigars or cigarettes (but the guidelines for articles 9 and 10 do reference cigarettes having ‘cigarette paper’). Moreover, a recent analysis of different countries’ FCTC efforts to address non-cigarette tobacco products found almost no references to national efforts directed specifically at cigars 57. At the same time, other research finds considerable tobacco industry activity to interfere with national efforts to implement the FCTC effectively 58.…”