Important information about IQOS

 

PMI offers quality, scientifically substantiated smoke-free products that are better choices than continued smoking. Our vision is that our smoke-free products will one day replace cigarettes.

1. Cigarette smoking causes serious diseases and is addictive. Without question, the best decision any smoker can make is to quit tobacco and nicotine use altogether.
2. Minors should not use tobacco or nicotine in any form.
3. Our products distributed through or described on this website (subsequently “relevant products”) are for adults who would otherwise continue to smoke or use other nicotine products.
4. We do not offer the relevant products to people who have never used tobacco or nicotine products or who have quit using tobacco and nicotine products. The relevant products are not alternatives to quitting and are not designed as cessation aids.
5. The use of the relevant products is not risk free and provides nicotine, which is addictive.
6. We inform consumers of all relevant safety information.

 

Safety Warnings & Instructions

 

Tobacco and Nicotine

• Tobacco sticks contain nicotine, which is addictive.
• IQOS is not risk-free. The best way to reduce tobacco- and nicotine-related health risks is to quit tobacco and nicotine use altogether.
• Some users of nicotine-containing products may experience abdominal pain, chest pain, choking sensation, cough, difficulty breathing, dizziness, dry mouth, dry throat, gingivitis, headache, malaise, nasal stuffiness, nausea, mouth irritation, palpitations, throat irritation, and vomiting.
• Nicotine-containing products should not be used by people who have or are at risk of heart disease, are diabetic, are epileptic, or are experiencing seizures.
• Nicotine-containing products should not be used during pregnancy or while breast-feeding. If you are pregnant, breast-feeding, or think you may be pregnant, you should quit tobacco and nicotine use altogether.
• Stopping smoking or switching to IQOS and its respective tobacco sticks, or other nicotine-containing products may require the adjustment of the dosing of certain medicines (e.g. theophylline, clozapine, ropinirole).
• If you have questions about whether you should use IQOS, given an existing health condition, consult a health care professional.

 

Use of tobacco sticks

• Only use IQOS 3 DUOTM or earlier generation devices with compatible tobacco sticks. Never use IQOS devices with a cigarette or similar products. Doing so may cause injury.
• Do not modify tobacco sticks, in any way or add any substance to tobacco sticks. Doing so may result in injury.

 

Prior to use of a product, users should read the full Safety Warnings & Instructions, which contain important safety information about the use of the product.

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS 2.4+

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS 3 MULTI

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS 3 DUO

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS ORIGINALS DUO

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS ORIGINALS ONE
 

Battery Degradation

IQOS devices, including holders, contain a lithium-ion battery. The lithium-ion battery in the devices is a consumable component that degrades with usage and age. This is a natural process common to all rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. As the battery ages, the active ingredients inside the battery become less capable of retaining energy, resulting in a permanent decrease in maximum battery capacity and usable energy. In addition, the active ingredients become less effective in delivering energy, resulting in a decrease of the battery’s ability to provide sufficient power for electronic device components to operate. As a result, where relevant, the duration of experience may appear to be shorter, the duration of device use or number of device uses with one full charge may appear to be fewer, the second consecutive use might be shorter or missing, or some device features, such as autostart, may not perform.The battery is a chemical system that requires certain temperature ranges during charge and discharge to work optimally and minimize battery capacity degradation over its lifetime. Although your device has a specific operating range within which the device will function, operating at the extreme ends of this range will degrade your battery faster. Your device comes with customized software to control the charging parameters in order to maximize the life of your device. These algorithms can support the longevity of your battery life, but they can still never fully mitigate the normal aging mechanisms of lithium batteries. High and low temperature operation of your device will accelerate the natural degradation of your battery. Even if you do not use your device the batteries contain chemical systems which can still degrade over time. In order to slow the battery degradation process, we recommend charging your device within the recommended temperature zone, not keeping it discharged for long periods of time and using the charging cables and power adaptors that come together with the device as per the user guides.

Please read more on important information in FAQ here.

 

Is using IQOS safe or risk-free?  

No, we cannot say that at this point. While switching completely to IQOS presents less risk to your health, IQOS is not risk-free and delivers nicotine, which is addictive. The best option is to quit tobacco and nicotine use altogether. However, switching completely to IQOS is a better choice than continuing to smoke.

Is nicotine harmful?  

Nicotine is addictive.  However, it is not the main cause of smoking related diseases. IQOS delivers nicotine in a comparable way to cigarettes. Our clinical studies show that the amount and rate of nicotine absorbed when using one tobacco stick with IQOS is comparable to that of smoking one cigarette.

How do you measure IQOS emissions, which you claim are reduced on average by 95% compared to the smoke of a 3R4F cigarette?

We state that IQOS emits on average 95% lower levels of harmful chemicals compared to cigarettes. The percentage (95%) refers to the average reduction of the levels of certain constituents prioritized for action by renowned public health organizations such as the WHO and the US FDA, and which are found in IQOS tobacco vapor, when compared to the smoke from a 3R4F reference cigarette. The exact percentage reduction depends on the specific list being referenced.  To this effect, we collect the tobacco vapor and smoke under the Health Canada Intense machine-smoking regime (55 mL puff volume, 2 second puff duration, 30 second interval puff) using a comparison on a per stick basis. Reduction calculations exclude nicotine.

What is the totality of evidence you refer to when claiming that switching to IQOS presents less risk than continued smoking?

The totality of evidence includes PMI’s clinical data (we conducted 10 clinical studies with thousands of participants in the US, UK, Japan and Poland), aerosol chemistry, and data from 18 nonclinical studies. The totality of evidence demonstrates that switching completely to IQOS, while not risk-free, presents less risk of harm compared with continuing to smoke cigarettes.

How do you measure the number of IQOS users?  

We use PMI Financials or estimates, IQOS user panels and PMI Market Research. The number of total users we report refers to IQOS users for whom PMI tobacco sticks for heating represent at least 5% of their daily tobacco consumption over the past 7 days, while the number of people we estimate have completely quit cigarette smoking refers to IQOS users who have completely quit cigarettes and for whom PMI tobacco sticks for heating represent at least 70% of their past 7-day heated tobacco consumption.

What is this 3R4F cigarette you refer to?  

It is a cigarette independently designed by the University of Kentucky in the US for scientific research purposes. It is a comparator commonly used in tobacco research, which allows the data of a given study to be compared to that of another study. 3R4F research cigarettes are not commercially available to consumers.

 

You might find consumer communication around the website and in other touchpoints that come from the following sources for IQOS products:

IQOS leaves significantly less stains on your teeth* than cigarettes. Important information: If teeth are already stained, switching to IQOS will not reverse the colour of those stains. 
* Source: non-clinical laboratory study conducted in Switzerland with IQOS aerosol on human teeth and the most widely used dental composites. Contrary to real world conditions, teeth were not exposed to other staining substances which may influence the results.
 

IQOS has no negative impact on indoor air quality*. This is shown by air quality tests conducted in accordance with international standards.
*Source: PMI study conducted under ISO standards simulating real-world scenarios and based on threshold limits established by existing air quality guidelines.
 

IQOS emits on average 95% lower levels of harmful chemicals compared to cigarettes.*

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: IQOS is not risk-free

*Reductions in levels of the 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke, which do not include nicotine. This does not necessarily equal a 95% reduction in risk.
 

Tar is the residue from smoke after a cigarette is burned. IQOS does not produce tar because it heats tobacco instead of burning it. It generates an aerosol residue that is fundamentally different from tar and consists of significantly lower levels of harmful chemicals.* IQOS emits on average 95% lower levels of harmful chemicals compared to cigarettes.** Switching completely to IQOS is less harmful than continuing to smoke.***

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: This does not necessarily equal a 95% reduction in risk. IQOS is not risk-free. The absence of tar does not mean that IQOS is risk-free. IQOS provides nicotine, which is addictive.

*Reductions in levels of the 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke, which do not include nicotine. 
**Reductions in levels of the 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke, which do not include nicotine.
*** Based on the totality of evidence available for IQOS in comparison with continuing to smoke.
 

CIGARETTES PRODUCE TAR - IQOS DOESN’T

Tar is the residue from smoke after a cigarette is burned. IQOS does not produce tar because it heats tobacco instead of burning it. It generates an aerosol residue that is fundamentally different from tar and consists of significantly lower levels of harmful chemicals.*

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: The absence of tar does not mean that IQOS is risk-free. IQOS provides nicotine, which is addictive.

*Reductions in levels of the 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke, which do not include nicotine.
 

There are more than 19.1 million* IQOS users globally, of which 13.9 million** have completely quit cigarettes.
*Source: PMI Financials or estimates, IQOS user panels and PMI Market Research. Status as of March 2021. *IQOS users for whom tobacco sticks for heating represent at least 5% of their daily tobacco consumption over the past 7 days. 
**IQOS users who have completely quit cigarettes and for whom PMI tobacco sticks for heating represent at least 70% of their past 7-day heated tobacco consumption. 
 

There are more than 19.1 million* IQOS users globally, of which 13.9 million** have completely quit cigarettes.
*Source: PMI Financials or estimates, IQOS user panels and PMI Market Research. Status as of March 2021. *IQOS users for whom PMI tobacco sticks for heating represent at least 5% of their daily tobacco consumption over the past 7 days. 
**IQOS users who have completely quit cigarettes and for whom PMI tobacco sticks for heating represent at least 70% of their past 7-day heated tobacco consumption.