IEVA would like to share its contribution to the European Commission’s public consultation on the EU Cardiovascular Plan.

As the EU intensifies its efforts to reduce the immense burden of smoking on public health – and on cardiovascular health in particular – vaping products should be recognised as an important harm-reduction tool. They can support smokers in progressively quitting combustible tobacco, thereby helping to reduce and prevent cardiovascular diseases across Europe.

IEVA therefore encourages the Commission to recognise the role of vaping in both harm reduction and smoking cessation, and to ensure that these products are considered within the framework of the Cardiovascular Health Plan. By doing so, the EU can strengthen prevention strategies and save lives.

Tobacco – Europe‘s Primary Public Health Challenge
Tobacco smoking is the leading public health threat in Europe and is responsible for the deaths of almost 700,000 Europeans every year. It remains the main preventable cause of premature death in Europe.

Smoking generates an array of serious diseases. Besides the well-known risks of cancer and the impacts on the lungs, combustible tobacco leads to a wide array of cardiovascular conditions, such as: strokes, atherosclerosis, aortic ruptures, peripheral artery diseases, heart attacks.

IEVA’s Position
IEVA champions the objective of Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan (2022) to reduce smoking prevalence in Europe to 5% by 2040.

In the same spirit, IEVA welcomes the Cardiovascular Plan’s goal to support prevention efforts, with the aim of reducing the number of Europeans who develop cardiovascular disease and preventing premature deaths.

Vaping products are an effective tool to support these prevention efforts on two different aspects: harm reduction and smoking cessation.

See the whole contribution here: