The WHO hates how Sweden is saving lives
June 01, 2026 by junonews.com
The WHO hates how Sweden is saving lives
Sweden is presented as a real-world example of how smoking rates can fall when adults are given access to safer nicotine alternatives. Rather than trying to eliminate nicotine entirely, the Swedish approach focuses on moving people away from combustible cigarettes and towards smoke-free products such as snus and nicotine pouches. The World Health Organization’s warnings about these products are criticised as overly moralistic, especially when cigarettes remain widely available in many countries. Canada is used as a contrasting example, where smoke-free nicotine products are heavily restricted while cigarettes can still be bought easily. The piece argues that public health should focus less on fear of nicotine itself and more on reducing the harms caused by smoking.
9.90% of the adult population are current smokers. There are approximately 867,000 current smokers in Sweden 11.70% of men are current smokers but only 8.10% of women.
SOURCE: GSTHR
