BAT Rothmans, Significant Reduction in Risks of Lung Disease and Cancer When Fully Switching from Conventional Cigarettes to E-Cigarettes

BAT Rothmans 'Glo Pro Slim'

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[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] A study has found that when smokers completely switch from conventional cigarettes to heated tobacco products at the beginning of the year, various indicators associated with the potential risk of lung diseases and cardiovascular diseases significantly improve.

On the morning of the 11th, BAT Rothmans held a press conference at The Westin Chosun Seoul in Sogong-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, announcing the results of a one-year clinical study on harm reduction of its heated tobacco product, "glo."

According to the study, smokers who completely switched from conventional cigarettes to glo showed significant and sustained improvements in many potential harm indicators related to the early onset of lung diseases, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases compared to those who continued smoking conventional cigarettes. Some of the observed improvements were similar to those in the group that had quit smoking for over 12 months. BAT evaluated this as scientific evidence that glo is the least harmful alternative to quitting smoking for adult smokers.

Specifically, biomarkers indicating potential DNA damage related to lung cancer significantly and continuously decreased, and white blood cell counts, an inflammation marker associated with early onset of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and other smoking-related illnesses, also significantly decreased. Additionally, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, related to reduced cardiovascular disease risk, and lung health indicators (FeNO) showed continuous improvement.

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Dr. Sharon Goodall, Head of Regulatory Science at BAT, who presented the findings, explained, "While nicotine is addictive and glo is not completely harmless, the toxicity of the aerosol produced when inhaling glo was 90-95% lower compared to conventional cigarette smoke." She added, "This study provides the most important data on glo and heated tobacco products, offering new evidence of the sustained positive changes that can occur when completely switching to glo, thereby strengthening glo’s profile as a harm reduction product."

The clinical study was conducted over one year with more than 500 healthy adults aged 23 to 55 residing in the UK. Participants were divided into four groups: non-smokers, quitters, those who continued smoking conventional cigarettes, and those who completely switched to glo. Monthly tests were conducted on key biomarkers related to exposure to toxic substances in cigarette smoke and potential risk indicators associated with early onset of specific diseases. The research team measured 58 biochemical, physiological, and psychological variables, resulting in approximately 144,000 individual measurements.

Overview of BAT Rothmans Sacheon Factory

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BAT Rothmans also announced that its "H-ESG (Health-Environment, Social, Governance)" initiative, which aims to reach 50 million consumers of non-combustible products by 2030, continues to achieve stable results. As of the first half of this year, BAT reported that the number of consumers of non-combustible products reached 20.4 million, nearly a 250% increase compared to 8 million in 2018.

Kim Eunji, CEO of BAT Rothmans, stated, "The domestic market share of glo in the heated tobacco product segment, which was only about 6% in 2020, has nearly doubled to approximately 12% as of June this year. We will continue responsible management in Korea based on our H-ESG activities."

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