She became an advisor to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1999 and in 2002 was made head of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Tobacco Control.
[2][3] A central goal of her health policy commitment was to educate people about the dangers of all forms of smoking, including electric cigarettes and all its variants, including "Smokeless Tobacco" such as chewing tobacco and snuff.
"[4] Pötschke-Langer called for the maintenance of a trade ban in Europe for oral tobacco products.
[1] She was awarded the Order of the Cross of Merit on Ribbon by the Federal Republic of Germany in 2007, for her work on cancer prevention and non-smokers' rights.
[2] She also received the WHO's Tobacco Free World Award for her "outstanding contributions to public health", in 1999; and jointly with her colleagues in 2007 and 2011.