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Although this group has the highest smoking rate, smoking among people who use illegal drugs has not received much attention. This is why the National Union of Drug Addicts, the Union of Urban Survivors (USU) organizes an open online meeting to discuss the reasons for reducing the harm of tobacco.

“As a community organization dedicated to helping individuals understand the true meaning of harm reduction and its many different aspects, we are committed to working with drug users and reducing the harm associated with combustible tobacco,” said Robert Suarez, senior drug addict Say. -User activists and USU’s national coordinator, tell the filter. "E-cigarettes are a step towards reducing harm."

Researchers found that more than half of people with substance use disorder (SUD)—56%—reported having used cigarettes in the past month, compared with 18% of those without SUD. Although smoking rates in the United States have declined over the past few decades, smoking rates have increased significantly among people who use illegal substances (including heroin, other sedatives, and stimulants) since 2002. Most people who smoke for a long time die from smoking-related causes.

The harm reduction people did not ignore this. "Of the thousands of injecting drug users I have met, basically everyone smokes," Canadian epidemiologist and safe supply pioneer Dr. Mark Tyndall said at the Nicotine Global Forum last year. "For them, nicotine is a way to pass the time and calm the nerves between repairs. However, at the same time, it is painful that cigarettes are killing people-more than HIV, hepatitis C , Even the catastrophic overdose epidemic sweeping North America is even more terrifying."

However, some harm reduction programs have disappointedly ruled out tobacco harm reduction (THR)-others in the movement are seeking to address this situation.

Many drug users have tried nicotine replacement therapy, such as patches, gum or inhalers, but the success rate is only about 7%. Nicotine smoking has changed the rules of the game, and the success rate of helping people quit smoking is much higher.

There is an urgent need to include THR in the strategy of providing services to drug users. Why not provide e-cigarettes and sterile syringes? Both significantly reduce damage. To this end, the Urban Survivors’ Union is holding a nationwide conference call to discuss the health problems of smokers, e-cigarettes and drug users. Suarez, THR advocate and e-cigarette shop owner Spike Babaian and I will be among the speakers.

You can use the following details to join the conference call on Tuesday, December 7th at 9 PM Eastern Time:  

Top photos of Helen Redmond

The Impact Foundation of Operation Filter has won scholarships and donations for the Knowledge Action Transformation, and the organization organized the Global Nicotine Forum. USU also won a scholarship from KAC.

Helen is the senior editor of Filter. She has written articles on nicotine, mental health, and drug policy for publications such as Al Jazeera, AlterNet, Harper's, and The Influence. As an LCSW, she works with drug users in medical and community mental health settings. As an expert on tobacco harm reduction, she provides training and consultation on mental health, nicotine use and THR, and organized the first tobacco harm reduction conference in the United States in 2016. Helen is also a documentary filmmaker.

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