Good Conversion Practices for PMI’s Smoke-free Products

PMI offers a variety of quality, scientifically substantiated smoke-free products that are much 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. PMI’s smoke-free products are for adults who would otherwise continue to smoke or use other nicotine products. 
4. We do not offer PMI’s smoke-free products to people who have never used tobacco or nicotine products or who have quit using tobacco and nicotine products. Our smoke-free products are not alternatives to quitting and are not designed as cessation aids. 
5. PMI’s smoke-free products are not risk free and contain nicotine, which is addictive. Switching to a smoke-free product is, however, a better choice than continuing to smoke. 
6. We support our adult smoke-free product users in their journey to full conversion through education and guidance. 
7. For consumers to experience the benefits of smoke-free products, they must switch completely and abandon smoking permanently. 
8. We inform consumers of all relevant safety information about our smoke-free products.

 

Safety Warnings & Instructions

Tobacco and Nicotine

• Tobacco sticks used with IQOS^TM and lil^TM devices, contain nicotine, which is addictive.
• IQOS, lil are 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, lil and their respective tobacco sticks or pods, 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, lil given an existing health condition, consult a health care professional.

 

Use of heated tobacco sticks 

Only use: 

• IQOS 3 DUO^TM or earlier generation devices with HeatSticks
• IQOS ILUMA^TM with SMARTCORE^TM sticks, 
• lil SOLID^TM 2.0 with dedicated heated tobacco sticks, 
• lil SOLID Ez^TM with dedicated heated tobacco sticks.

Never use IQOS or lil devices with a cigarette or similar products. Doing so may cause injury.

Do not modify Heat sticks, SMARTCORE^TM sticks, dedicated heated tobacco sticks or add any substance to Heat sticks, SMARTCORE^TM sticks, dedicated heated 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

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 ILUMA Prime 

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS ILUMA

Safety Warnings & Instructions for IQOS ILUMA ONE 

Safety Warnings & Instructions for lil SOLID 2.0

Safety Warnings & Instructions for lil SOLID EZ

 

Battery Degradation

IQOS, lil SOLID, lil SOLID Ez 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 number of puffs or experiences 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 or double tap for the IQOS ILUMA holder, 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. 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.

How do you measure IQOS emissions, which you claim are reduced on average by 95% compared to the smoke of cigarettes? 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 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke. These do not include nicotine. To this effect, we collect the tobacco aerosol from IQOS 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. 

What is the reference cigarette you refer to as compared to cigarette smoke?   The reference cigarette is the 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. These research cigarettes are not commercially available to consumers.

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 HeatSticks 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 HeatSticks represent at least 70% of their past 7-day heated tobacco consumption.

What is the metal inside SMARTCORE^TM STICKS? Should I be concerned? SMARTCORE^TM sticks are designed to be used only with IQOS ILUMA devices that have SMARTCORE INDUCTION SYSTEM^TM, which uses a metal heating element coated with stainless steel and placed inside a SMARTCORE^TM stick for heating of tobacco. SMARTCORE^TM sticks should be kept out of reach of children and pets at all times and should not be taken apart, as the metal heating element has sharp edges. Swallowed SMARTCORE^TM sticks can cause serious injury to internal organs due to the presence of this metal heating element.  If SMARTCORE^TM sticks are swallowed, seek medical attention immediately. Always dispose of SMARTCORE^TM sticks immediately after use according to local waste disposal regulations.

What is the reference cigarette you refer to?  The reference cigarette is the 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. These research cigarettes are not commercially available to consumers.

You will find consumer communication around the website and in other touchpoints that come from the following sources:

 

“Thousands of adult smokers around the world convert to IQOS every day.*
 *Status as of February 2024 Exclusive Heat-Not-Burn users that are using PMI heated tobacco sticks for at least 70% of their past-7 days heated tobacco consumption. PMI Financials or estimates, IQOS user panels and PMI Market Research.”

 

“IQOS ILUMA emits 95% less harmful chemicals compared to cigarettes.*
 Important information: This does not necessarily equal a 95% reduction in risk. IQOS ILUMA is not risk-free. 

* “95% less” represents the average reduction in levels of the 9 chemicals recommended for reduction in cigarette smoke by the World Health Organization, which do not include nicotine. See Important Information on IQOS.com”

 

Unlike cigarettes, IQOS ILUMA does not burn tobacco and therefore produces no smoke.

 

“The majority of smokers who switch to IQOS completely quit cigarettes.*
 *PMI Financials or estimates, IQOS user panels and PMI Market Research.”

 

“IQOS ILUMA is a better alternative compared to traditional smoking.
 Important information: IQOS ILUMA is not risk-free.”

 

“IQOS ILUMA leaves less lingering smell than cigarettes.*
 * 90% agreement amongst 674 adult consumers in Japan and Italy, 2020 – 2021.”

 

“CIGARETTES PRODUCE TAR  -  IQOS ILUMA DOESN’T 
 Tar is the residue from smoke after a cigarette is burned. 
 IQOS ILUMA 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.*
 Switching completely to IQOS ILUMA is less harmful than continuing to smoke.**
 
 IMPORTANT INFORMATION: The absence of tar does not mean that IQOS ILUMA is risk free. IQOS ILUMA 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.
 **  Based on the totality of evidence available for IQOS in comparison with continuing to smoke.  See Important Information on IQOS.com”

 

“CIGARETTES PRODUCE HIGH AMOUNTS OF CARBON MONOXIDE – IQOS ILUMA DOESN’T 
 Cigarettes burn tobacco, which produces high amounts of carbon monoxide.
 IQOS ILUMA doesn’t burn tobacco, producing on average 98% less carbon monoxide (CO) and significantly lower levels of other harmful chemicals compared to cigarettes.* 
 
 IMPORTANT INFORMATION: This does not mean a 98% reduction in risk, and carbon monoxide is only one of many harmful chemicals in cigarette smoke. IQOS ILUMA is not risk free, and provides nicotine which is addictive.

* We measured the levels of the 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke, which do not include nicotine, and these are reduced on average by 95%. See Important Information on IQOS.com”

 

“IQOS ILUMA uses induction heating technology, heating tobacco from the inside, providing a clean and consistent experience.”

 

“When using IQOS ILUMA, the tobacco vapor dissipates more quickly than cigarette smoke.*

* 85% agreement amongst 674 adult consumers in Japan and Italy, 2020 – 2021.”

 

“Cigarettes expose others to smoke – IQOS ILUMA doesn’t.

IQOS ILUMA doesn’t produce smoke or second-hand smoke.
 It produces a tobacco vapor that contains significantly less harmful chemicals*, resulting in less impact on the air around you and others compared to cigarette smoke.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: IQOS ILUMA is not risk-free for you or others around you.

* Reductions in levels of the 9 harmful chemicals the World Health Organization recommends to reduce in cigarette smoke, which do not include nicotine. See Important Information on IQOS.com”

 

“IQOS ILUMA provides a more pleasurable experience compared to previous IQOS generations.*

* 81% agreement amongst 714 adult consumers in Japan and Italy, 2020 -2021.”

 

“IQOS ILUMA provides cigarette-like satisfaction.*
 * Based on clinical studies, aerosol chemistry and declaration of satisfaction level from 600 adult consumers in Japan, 2022.”