GENEVA — On 19 May 2026, the World Health Organization awarded global leaders for taking bold action against tactics used by tobacco and nicotine companies to attract young people. The recipients were recognized as part of the 2026 World No Tobacco Day Awards for their outstanding contributions to tobacco control.

Worldwide, at least 40 million children aged 13–15 use tobacco products, and youth use of e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches continues to rise. The WHO stated that tobacco and nicotine companies are deliberately engineering products to make them more appealing, easier to use, and harder to quit—especially for adolescents and young people. Nicotine pouches, one of the fastest-growing nicotine products on the market, are being aggressively promoted through social media influencers, bright packaging, candy-like flavours, and lifestyle branding aimed at youth. "Nicotine is highly addictive and harmful, especially at high concentrations, particularly for children, adolescents and young adults whose brains are still developing," said Etienne Krug, Director of the Department of Health Determinants, Promotion and Prevention at WHO.

About 160 countries still lack specific regulations for nicotine pouches despite rapidly growing global sales. The WHO urged governments to protect a new generation from addiction by banning flavoured products, prohibiting all advertising and promotion, implementing comprehensive smoke- and vape-free indoor public spaces, and strengthening enforcement.

The city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was among the recognized jurisdictions. It launched large-scale public awareness campaigns, strengthened smoke-free legislation to include all tobacco and nicotine products, and carried out hundreds of coordinated inspections to enforce bans on e-cigarette sales and advertising.

Tobacco use kills more than 7 million people annually and is linked to cardiovascular disease, respiratory illness, and over 20 types or subtypes of cancer. The WHO encouraged the world’s more than 1 billion tobacco, e-cigarette, and nicotine pouch users to begin quitting on 31 May and break free from addiction.