Schumer's “Bloomberg financed” attack on nicotine pouches – Contrafactual!

Senate Majority Leader, Chuck Schumer, recently attacked nicotine pouches, calling them a “pouch packed with problems”. Schumer disregards facts and should instead listen to the Swedish Government, a country which is soon to be smoke-free, due to the use of nicotine pouches.

Schumer recently issued a "warning to parents," claiming that young people are becoming addicted to nicotine pouches through social media. He condemned the product as "dangerous" and a "pouch packed with problems," stating that "these nicotine pouches seem to target young kids, teenagers, and even younger individuals, using social media to hook them."

Schumer’s most likely Bloomberg financed statement is clearly contrafactual. He should look at Sweden, which is on the verge of becoming a smoke-free country, largely due to the use of alternative nicotine products such as nicotine pouches. Sweden has 135 smoking-related deaths per 100,000 men. In comparison, the rest of the EU has 296 smoking-related deaths per 100,000 men. These figures should serve as an indicator of the potential impact of new nicotine products in mitigating the negative health effects of smoking.

Schumer should engage in a dialogue with the Swedish government and visit Sweden with the longest experience from alternative nicotine products that has made the most progress globally in the use of alternative nicotine products. In Sweden, youth usage of alternative nicotine products is minimal, AND only six percent of the male population smokes. In the rest of the EU, the smoking rate is 28 percent. These numbers cannot be ignored.

Schumer should base his opinions on reality. Smokers have a 25 times greater chance of dying from lung cancer than non-smokers, and smoking shortens life by a decade. The lower smoking prevalence in Sweden has clear effects on public health. Sweden has the lowest number of smoking-attributable male deaths in Europe, the lowest number of smoking-attributable lung cancer deaths, and the lowest number of smoking-attributable new cancer cases.

Even Bloomberg News' own journalists cannot overlook the facts, so Schumer shouldn't be able to either.