Funciones y oportunidades clave en el control del tabaco
Early Intervention and Preventive Care
Health professionals are uniquely positioned to identify early signs of tobacco use and intervene before significant harm occurs.
Brief advice during consultations can increase quitting success rates by up to 84%. Tools like the WHO’s “Five A’s” model (Ask, Advise, Assess, Assist, Arrange) enable quick, structured tobacco interventions within routine care.
Hemos creado el último recurso de RDT para responsables políticos y profesionales sanitarios
Addressing Nicotine Misperceptions
Many health professionals and the public wrongly associate nicotine with cancer and other smoking-related diseases.
Accurate knowledge is essential: nicotine is not the primary cause of smoking-related harm. Misconceptions hinder harm reduction efforts and deter smokers from safer alternatives like e-cigarettes and NRTs.
Advocating for Less Harmful Smoke-free Nicotine Alternatives
Non-combustible products like e-cigarettes, nicotine pouches and medicinal nicotine replacement therapies (NRTs) significantly reduce harm compared to smoking.
Health professionals can guide patients toward these options and integrate harm reduction into care strategies. One of the biggest opportunities to create a positive impact in care is in oral health disease and disability in poor countries, where the use of toxic unregulated oral tobacco products can be devastating, and health professionals such as dentists can nurture positive change.
Did you know?
68% of smokers want to quit, but only a small percentage succeed without proper support.
Thyrian, J. R., Panagiotakos, D. B., Polychronopoulos, E., West, R., Zatonski, W., John, U., & Kotz, D. (2008). The relationship between smokers' motivation to quit and intensity of tobacco control at the population level: a comparison of five European countries. BMC Public Health, 8(1), 2.
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Leadership and Influence
Health professionals are trusted opinion leaders who can shape public perceptions and policies.
Reducing physician smoking rates and addressing misinformation can drive societal changes in tobacco use. Collaborative efforts are vital, especially in lower and middle income countries (LMICs), where tobacco-related harm is disproportionately high.
Global Collaboration
Partnerships between health professionals, organizations like WHO, and policymakers are critical for reducing tobacco use.
Expanding access to cessation services, integrating harm reduction into primary care, and promoting interdisciplinary efforts are essential for progress.
By addressing nicotine myths, advocating for safer alternatives, and leveraging their trusted roles, health professionals can lead the charge in reducing tobacco use and achieving a smoke-free future.
A Cochrane review assessing such interventions concluded that using NRT could help smokers unwilling to quit to reduce their cigarette smoking in the short term and to quit in the longer term.
References:
- Cochrane. (2022). Latest Cochrane review finds high certainty evidence that nicotine e-cigarettes are more effective for helping people quit smoking than traditional nicotine replacement therapy. Reference link
- World Health Organization (WHO). (Year). The Five A’s Model for Tobacco Cessation Interventions. Geneva: WHO.
- Smoke-Free Sweden. (Year). No Smoke, Less Harm. Reference link
- Global Action to End Smoking. (Year). Doctors’ Survey on Nicotine Perceptions. Reference link
- Walker, N., Parag, V., Verbiest, M., Laking, G., Laugesen, M., & Bullen, C. (2021). Nicotine e-cigarettes for smoking cessation: A randomized controlled trial. New England Journal of Medicine. Reference link
- Oral Nicotine Commission. (2024). Oral Nicotine Commission Report. Reference link
- Yach, D., Human, D., & Raza, S. A. (2024). Lives Saved: Integrating Harm Reduction into Tobacco Control in 4 LMICs
- Cochrane. (2022). Latest Cochrane review finds high certainty evidence that nicotine e-cigarettes are more effective for helping people quit smoking than traditional nicotine replacement therapy. Reference link
- Myers Smith, K., Phillips-Waller, A., Pesola, F., McRobbie, H., Przulj, D., Orzol, M., & Hajek, P. (2022). E-cigarettes versus nicotine replacement treatment as harm reduction interventions for smokers who find quitting difficult: Randomized controlled trial. Addiction, 117(1), 224–233. Reference link
