EU Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi has declared that new nicotine products such as vapes, heated tobacco and nicotine pouches are “one hundred per cent” as harmful as traditional cigarettes.
Commissioner rejects harm reduction distinction
In an interview with Euractiv, Várhelyi was asked whether he is convinced that new products such as vapes, heated tobacco and nicotine pouches are as harmful as traditional cigarettes. He replied: “Yes, I am. Absolutely. One hundred per cent.”
The commissioner pointed to data showing a sharp rise in vaping among people aged 15 and over in the EU – up 45 per cent to four per cent in 2024 – and said that when it comes to younger people, “they are even worse”.
Várhelyi also confirmed that the Commission is preparing a broader assessment of alternative tobacco products’ health effects, due to be published in 2026, drawing together multiple studies with the World Health Organisation playing a central role.
“One of the key policy directions – also for me personally – is the work of the WHO, because the WHO has been extremely solid and very consistent in its work,” he said.
Responding to criticism from the tobacco industry over the direction of policy, Várhelyi added: “If there is one thing I know about the tobacco industry, it is that they are very difficult to please – because the direction of policy is not going their way.”
Harm reduction debate
The handling of alternative nicotine products in EU policy remains deeply contested, particularly over whether all products carry the same level of health risk. While the Commission points to rising youth use and cardiovascular data, harm reduction specialists argue that decades of evidence show the primary driver of smoking-related disease is the combustion of tobacco rather than nicotine itself.
They point to assessments by regulators and health bodies in several countries which conclude that non-combustible products expose users to substantially lower levels of toxicants than cigarettes, and that switching away from smoking can reduce health risks for people who would otherwise continue to smoke.
Evidence from Sweden is frequently cited in this debate. Despite similar levels of nicotine use to other EU countries, Sweden reports the lowest tobacco-related mortality rate in the EU, a trend widely linked to the widespread use of smoke-free products such as snus and nicotine pouches rather than cigarettes.
Earlier controversy over nicotine claims
The interview follows earlier controversy over Várhelyi’s public statements on nicotine. In September, he deleted and edited a post on X after initially claiming that “nicotine.. causes cancer” – a statement at odds with the European Commission’s own scientific assessments and the position of bodies such as Cancer Research UK, which state that nicotine is not a carcinogen.
Although the post was later amended to say nicotine “contributes to cancer development”, harm reduction advocates and scientists said the correction still misrepresented the evidence, noting that cancer risk is driven primarily by toxic substances released through the combustion of tobacco rather than nicotine itself.
Policy focus vs past allegations
More broadly, some observers argue that the intensity of scrutiny on Várhelyi’s health positions contrasts with limited questioning on other controversies linked to his career.
These include long-standing allegations related to his time as Hungary’s ambassador to the EU, when he was accused by commentators and diplomatic sources of running a spy ring out of the Hungarian Embassy in Brussels – claims that have never been substantiated in an official inquiry and have been denied by Hungarian authorities.
Critics say the absence of such questioning in high-profile interviews raises concerns about selective scrutiny, with tobacco policy generating headlines while other allegations receive comparatively little attention.
