TURIN. “If it were not yet clear, there is a big difference between traditional and electronic cigarettes. It is also necessary to underline – at an international level – the importance of the risk reduction approach in the fight against smoking which is based, also and above all, on the differentiation at a regulatory level between classic blondes, the main cause of deaths and smoking diseases. -correlated all over the world, and new generation products without combustion such as e-cigarettes ».
These are the reasons that push, for the third consecutive year, Umberto Roccatti, president of Anafe and vice president of Ieva (national and European association of electronic smoke producers) to get on his bike to travel 700 km that will take him from Turin to Strasbourg in front of the seat of the European Parliament. To reach the goal, the “Ride 4 Vape” (this is the name of the bike tour, ed) includes 4 stages, also passing through Geneva, where the World Health Organization is based. “I decided to make an extra stop because I want to deliver to the WHO the main independent scientific studies on e-cigs where a reduction in toxicity of up to 95% less than traditional cigarettes is found”. Roccatti is keen to reiterate the concept, so much so that for this edition the claim of the symbolic journey will be “Vaping is not smoking: differentiate!”.
«With this new tour we want to concretely demonstrate, once again, how a person like me, who smoked 30 cigarettes a day, by going to vape can normalize their health, change their lifestyle and play sports successfully. In fact, it has been widely demonstrated that the use of e-cigs not only impacts much less on health but represents a valid alternative for all those who cannot or do not want to quit smoking ».
Tomorrow, Saturday 2 July, Roccatti will therefore cut the starting line and begin his long ride that will take him to Strasbourg. A destination that is not accidental, he explains: “I want us to ask ourselves about any critical issues that could arise from the next legislative choices of the EU”. Roccatti refers in particular to the Excise Duty Directive (Ted) and the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) “if they were to be based exclusively on the maximum precautionary approach”.
“The legislator must understand that 91% of smokers are unable or unwilling to quit smoking: for this vast majority, anti-smoking centers and drug therapies are useless. If the goal is to have effective European health policies and reach the 5% (from the current 25%) share of smokers in the EU by 2040, it is important to enhance the electronic cigarette as a tool for reducing risk and to make effective a differentiation both on the tax plan and bans “.