Two new tobacco cessation medicines added to the WHO essential medicines list
Submitted by Edie
- 24 November 2021
Every two years, the World Health Organization (WHO) publishes its Model List of Essential Medicines (EML), a collection of medicines considered essential by WHO experts.
The purpose of the list is to guide national authorities on the type of medicines that should be available in the country.
On the 1st of October, the WHO introduced two new medicines classed as essential medicine for people who wish to stop using tobacco.
Bupropion and varenicline are medicines that work in a different way from nicotine replacement. The new medicines reduce cravings for nicotine without supplying a nicotine substitute, thereby supporting people in quitting tobacco use and reducing nicotine dependence.