For decades, public health framed nicotine as the enemy. It was addictive, dangerous, and likened to heroin or cocaine. But what if that framing, once useful in the fight against smoking, became one of the biggest obstacles to tobacco harm reduction today?
In Part 2 of our special interview with tobacco control veteran Cliff Douglas, we examine the origins of nicotine demonization, the rise of the modern tobacco control movement, and how fear-driven language continues to distort public understanding of safer nicotine products.
From the misuse of terms like “epidemic” and EVALI to the growing push for a nicotine-free world, Douglas argues public health has failed to evolve with the science.
Are nicotine vapes truly a health hazard—or has the framing itself become the danger?
Find out. Only on RegWatch by RegulatorWatch.com.
Released: May 26, 2026
Produced by: Brent Stafford
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