The Science and Technology Committee examine the impact of electronic cigarettes on human health (including their effectiveness as a stop-smoking tool), the suitability of regulations guiding their use, and the financial implications of a growing market on both business and the NHS.
The College recently signed a consensus statement with a number of other organisations, clarifying perceptions about the harms and benefits of using e-cigarettes and supporting the current evidence that vaping e-cigarettes is less harmful than smoking tobacco. However, for public health and health service purposes, e-cigarettes are only useful as a potential route towards stopping smoking. Access to e-cigarettes must be controlled carefully and there remains much that we do not know. The statement makes it clear they are not risk free and the College notes that considerable research in this area is required.
