New research published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health shows that the free provision of electronic cigarettes can help bring down smoking rates.

In an attempt to convince legislators to offer quitters free e-cigs, researchers in Glasgow, Scotland found that giving tobacco users vape kits helped them smoke fewer cigarettes and have more "smoke-free days" each month.

The 90-day trial also resulted in 37% of the 72 adult smokers involved in the study abstaining from cigarettes completely.

“Our data show that it is possible to facilitate significant behavioural change on the part of smokers as a result of providing them with access to high-quality e-cigarette products, at least for a short period of time,” said Professor Neil McKeganey, Director of Centre for Substance Use Research (CSUR), which conducted the study.

We gave 72 adult smokers a vaping device for 90 days and recorded what effect it had on their smoking habits.

- After 90 days 36.5% had quit smoking, check the link to find out more - ” CSUR (@csurglasgow) September 5, 2018

 

Smoking rates are falling in western countries, including the United States and the UK. But cigarettes continue to be the leading cause of preventable death.

When tobacco users stop smoking, the associated health risks start diminishing. The longer the period of abstinence, the better the health outcomes.

Landmark research from Public Health England (PHE) and the UK-based Royal College of Physicians shows that e-cigarettes are around 95% safer than cigarettes.

PHE recently re-stated this position, saying that e-cigarettes represent a fraction of the harm of cigarettes and arguing that smokers should be encouraged to switch to e-cigarettes.

We gave 72 adult smokers a vaping device for 90 days and recorded what effect it had on their smoking habits.

- by day 90 the rate of daily smoking had fallen from 88.7% to 27.5%, click the link for the full report - here

CSUR (@csurglasgow) September 3, 2018

 

CSUR gave each of the 72 participants a Blue PRO, a small refillable e-cigarette with a rechargeable battery.

Aged between 18 and 65, the participants were all Glasgow residents who had been smoking at least 10 cigarettes per day for at least the last year. None of the participants were regular e-cigarette users at the start of the study.

Researcher's checked on the progress of the participants via an online survey completed on days 1 (baseline), 30, 60 and 90 of the study.

After 90 days, the researchers found:

• 36.5% of participants abstained from smoking completely
• 17.5% of participants smoked every day, down from 88.7% on day one
• Participants smoked a median of five cigarettes per day, down from 15 on day one
• Participants smoked on a median of 13 days in a month, down from 30 on day one

We gave 72 adult smokers a vaping device for 90 days and recorded what effect it had on their smoking habits.

By the end, the median number of smoking days in a month had fallen from 30 days to 13 days.

Check the link for more information - here

CSUR (@csurglasgow) September 5, 2018

 

Participants were offered a full range of Blu e-liquid to choose from throughout the study period.  Researchers found that non-tobacco flavors were significantly more popular than the exclusive tobacco flavored vape juice.

At day 90, 75.9% of participants preferred non-tobacco flavors (fruity flavors most popular) compared with 13.8% who went for the tobacco-flavored e-liquid.

This finding has particular significance in the United States, where several cities have already banned the sale of flavored e-liquids and US Senators have introduced a bill to ban the liquids at a federal level.

In a discussion of their findings, the researchers pointed out that the abstinence level increased from the baseline to day 30 and continued to rise throughout the three month study, suggesting that more smokers will gradually quit over a longer period.

They conclude by suggesting that"the provision of e-cigarettes to smokers for at least a period of time, without financial charge, may well be something that services should consider."