The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched a new publication calling for governments to urgently ban all flavors in tobacco and nicotine products.
The world body, in a statement on Friday, said that the products includedcigarettes, pouches, hookahs and e-cigarettes, to protect youths from addiction and disease.
The organisation said that flavours like menthol, bubble gum and cotton candy were masking the harshness of tobacco and nicotine products, turning toxic products into youth-friendly bait
According to Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, Flavours undermine decades of progress in tobacco control.
”Without bold action, the global tobacco epidemic, already killing around eight million people each year, will continue to be driven by addiction dressed up with appealing flavours.” Ghebreyesus emphasized that flavors are fueling a new wave of addiction and should be banned, ” he added.
The WHO publication highlighted how flavors and accessories were marketed to bypass regulations and hook new users.
”Currently, over 50 countries have banned flavoured tobacco, while more than 40 countries have banned e-cigarette sales.
“This isn’t innovation, it’s manipulation. And we must stop it, ” Dr Rüdiger Krech, WHO Director of Health Promotion, stated,
Krech also emphasised that tobacco products, including heated tobacco products, expose users to cancer-causing chemicals and should be strictly regulated [2].
The 2025 World No Tobacco Day campaign theme is ‘Unmasking the Appeal: Exposing Industry Tactics on Tobacco and Nicotine Products’.
Krech honoured governments, youth activists, and civil society leaders pushing back against industry interference, saying, “Your actions are changing policy and saving lives. Flavours and the industries that deploy them, have no place in a healthy future.”
