The College of Dentists of Las Palmas and the Canarian Dental Foundation, which is part of the European Network for Smoking Prevention, have also demanded the withdrawal of the "Smoke-Free La Graciosa" campaign, promoted by the tobacco company Philip Morris International in collaboration with the Teguise City Council.
Both institutions, which emphasize that they are "strongly involved in the fight against tobacco", thus join the requests addressed to the Council by the Canarian Association of Pneumology and Thoracic Surgery (NEUMOCAN) and the Spanish Society of Pneumology and Thoracic Surgery (SEPAR), as well as the statements issued by the colleges of physicians of Las Palmas and Santa Cruz de Tenerife, against this initiative.
"The drop in cigarette sales has led the tobacco industry to base its strategy on artificial marketing campaigns aimed at the consumption of new tobacco products: heated tobacco and electronic cigarettes," these professionals emphasize, who warn that both products "are as addictive as conventional tobacco."
"Far from being harmless and contributing to 'harm reduction', these products expose consumers to the chemical and toxic compounds produced by the heating of glycerin, propylene glycol, nicotine and the aromas contained in the liquids of these products, which also release carcinogens, such as formaldehyde, glycidol and propylene oxide, with potential health risks," they emphasize.
In addition, they denounce that this "collaborative action" of the Teguise City Council "contravenes the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control of the World Health Organization, in relation to the restriction of sponsorship and participation in events and activities involving tobacco companies."