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** 28 February 2025
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** UK
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** Zyn boosts PMI’s growth, with concerns growing over youth usage (#1)
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** Dentist claims that ‘vape tongue’ cases are on the rise (#2)
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** Opinion: Is Sir Jim Mackey the person to take over the NHS? (#3)
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** Drinkaware’s conflict of interest made clear (#4)
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** International
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** Tobacco control faces challenges despite treaty progress (#5)
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** Links of the Week
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** Podcast: Let’s talk e-cigarettes (#6)
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** Campaign: No Smoking Day 2025 (#7)
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** IAS monthly Alcohol Alert: The 50th Kettil Bruun Society (KBS) conference (#8)
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** UK
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** Zyn boosts PMI’s growth, with concerns growing over youth usage

Philip Morris International (PMI) is seeing a boost in stock value, largely driven by the success of its smoke-free products, especially Zyn, a popular nicotine pouch. In 2024, Zyn's shipments rose by 50%, with strong demand in the USA. As a result, PMI is increasing production, though concerns are growing over increased usage of nicotine pouches among teenagers. The company is, reportedly, aggressively pursuing its smoke-free strategy, with CEO Jacek Olczak aiming for two-thirds of PMI’s revenue to come from these products by 2030, supported by significant investments in alternatives like IQOS and Zyn.

Source: The Economist, 27 February 2025

Editorial note: Despite its ‘smoke-free’ strategy, Philip Morris continues to rely on tobacco for most of its global profits and actively seeks to increase the size of its tobacco business. As well as opposing the Tobacco and Vapes Bill in the UK, PMI has released ([link removed]) dozens of new flavoured cigarette brands (known to be appealing to children) in Latin America in recent years. Industry efforts to market cigarettes are increasingly concentrated in lower-income countries which are vulnerable to industry lobbying efforts.
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** Dentist claims that ‘vape tongue’ cases are on the rise

A dentist has claimed that vaping leads to a condition known as “vape tongue”, along with other outcomes such as bad breath, dry mouth, tooth loss and oral cancer. A quote from Cancer Research UK states that: “There is no good evidence that vaping causes cancer.”

Source: The Sun, 28 February 2025

Editorial note: The claims made in this story are entirely anecdotal and there is no published evidence supporting the existence of conditions like “vape tongue”. The evidence shows that switching from smoking to vapes is still vastly better for oral health than smoking. A review of the impact of vaping on oral health in Dentistry ([link removed]) noted that long term use of vapes ‘is a balanced judgement between smoking relapse prevention against the small risk of any detrimental effects from the e-cigarettes themselves. Non-smokers taking up e-cigarettes will, however, be exposing themselves to unnecessary risks. The oral health consequences in this group are still poorly studied. We need more well-conducted research’.

Media publications often include graphics and tables claiming to show the health impacts of vaping e.g. “The 4 horrifying things that can happen to your body after vaping”. However, the claims made in these graphics are not evidence-based and tend to be drawn from media stories, speculation and misconceptions.
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** Opinion: Is Sir Jim Mackey the person to take over the NHS?

Writing for the Telegraph, Health Correspondent Michael Searles and Health Editor Laura Donnelly discuss whether Sir Jim Mackey, the NHS interim head, can successfully lead the NHS. According to Searles and Donnelly, Mackey is a seasoned NHS leader with a background in accounting and over three decades of experience in the health service.

Searles and Donnelly argue it is likely Mackey’s no-nonsense approach that appeals to Health Secretary Wes Streeting. According to Searles and Donnnelly, Mackey is known for his financial expertise and ability to make tough decisions, with a track record that includes leading Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust to achieve some of the highest ratings from the Care Quality Commission.

However, Searles and Donnelly conclude by pointing out that while Sir Jim's financial acumen and no-nonsense approach have earned him respect, the question remains whether his background as an NHS insider is what the health service needs to navigate its current crisis.

Source: Telegraph, 27 February 2025
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** Drinkaware’s conflict of interest made clear

A Private Eye ([link removed]) article [paywall] has reported a conflict of interest at the heart of Drinkaware.

The charity – which consistently claims to be ‘independent’ of the industry – received a letter from 25 alcohol companies including Diageo, Heineken, and AB InBev stating that they felt there was a “disconnect between the organisation’s stated objectives and its current work plan”. According to the article, this was after the charity’s new CEO Karen Tyrell (who joined in 2022) had been pushing for the charity to do more, including advocating for an “alcohol harm reduction strategy”.

The industry demanded that their “donations” (or funding) were mapped on to “signed-off investment plans”. As the article states, this would mean the industry would “effectively have power to veto ideas it didn’t like”. The letter also called for annual meetings where the charity would have to account for its work before the next round of funding was confirmed.

Drinkaware made some concessions, but instead of agreeing to the industry deciding on projects alone, the charity suggested that a “tripartite working group” – made up of the industry, Drinkaware, and government representatives – signed off projects. Private Eye states this wasn’t acceptable to the industry, which said it would only agree with government involvement if there was “alignment on agenda” beforehand and more wide-ranging financial transparency” from Drinkaware. Industry staff also critiqued individual points from a financial overview document.

Ironically, the initial letter had stated that the companies “want to see [Drinkaware’s] independence protected”.

Source: Institute of Alcohol Studies, February 2025
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** International
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** Tobacco control faces challenges despite treaty progress

The World Health Organization’s tobacco control treaty, established two decades ago, has contributed to a significant decline in tobacco use globally, with 118 million fewer users. The treaty has led to major health policies such as smoking bans, large warnings on cigarette packaging, and higher taxes.

However, despite these advances, tobacco consumption continues to be a major health issue, with 1.3 billion users worldwide. Concerns about new nicotine products are rising, alongside the tobacco industry's environmental damage. Although the treaty’s global reach is substantial, its full implementation remains inconsistent, requiring more action to protect public health and the environment.

Source: Al Jazeera, 27 February 2025

See also: FCTC - 20th anniversary of the entry into force of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control ([link removed])
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** Links of the Week
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** Podcast: Let’s talk e-cigarettes

In this podcast, hosts Associate Professor Jamie Hartman-Boyce and Associate Professor Nicola Lindson discuss the new evidence in e-cigarette research and interview Dr Olivier Drouin, a Clinical Assistant Professor at Université de Montréal. The hosts and Dr Drouin discuss his ongoing pilot randomized trial of a brief digital screening and intervention tool for parents and adolescents to address tobacco and electronic cigarette use, CanCEASE.

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** Campaign: No Smoking Day 2025

DHSC has published the campaign resources for No Smoking Day 2025, which falls on Wednesday 12 March. The resources include posters and digital assets that can be used use across social media, websites, digital screens and physical displays around the hopeful theme ‘Take back your life this No Smoking Day’.

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** IAS monthly Alcohol Alert: The 50th Kettil Bruun Society (KBS) conference

The 50th KBS conference has been announced, running from 9-13 June 2025 at the University of Glasgow. Co-hosted by the University of Stirling and the University of Glasgow, the event is supported by the Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS), Alcohol Change UK, SHAAP, and the Institute of Public Health. The society invites research and reports on various topics, including policy analysis, alcohol practices, and health impacts, particularly in underserved populations.

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ASH Daily News is a digest of published news on smoking-related topics. ASH is not responsible for the content of external websites. ASH does not necessarily endorse the material contained in this bulletin.

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