NEWS
E-cigarettes credited with helping 180,000
people in England quit smoking in just one year
E-cigarettes may have
helped around 18,000
people in England to give up
smoking in 2015, according
to new research published in
the British Medical Journal.
The use of e-cigarettes is indeed very
popular, with an estimated 2.8 million
vapers in the UK alone.
The study which was funded by
Cancer Research UK was published
in the British Medical Journal (BMJ).
Researchers from University College
London (UCL) say the rise of e-cigarettes
has helped thousands to give up
regular cigarettes across the nation –
and is associated with a higher rate of
successful quit attempts by smokers.
Robert West, co-author of the study and
Professor of Health Psychology at UCL,
stated: “We estimate for every 10,000
people who used an e-cigarette to quit,
approximately 580 would have quit who
wouldn’t have quit otherwise.
“The increased prevalence of
e-cigarettes in England does not
appear to have been associated with a
26 ISSUE 07 VAPOUROUND MAGAZINE
detectable change in attempts to stop
smoking…however, the increase in
e-cigarette use has been associated with
an increase in success of quit attempts.”
Prof Robert West concluded: “England
is sometimes singled out as being too
positive in its attitude to e-cigarettes.
This data suggests that our relatively
liberal regulation of e-cigarettes is
probably justified.”
“This significant yearon-year fall indicates that
something in UK tobacco
control policy is working,
and successful quitting
through substitution with
e-cigarettes is one
likely major contributor.”
Prof Linda Bauld, of Cancer Research
UK, said: “The British public have voted
with their feet and are choosing to use
e-cigarettes. This is a positive choice,
and we should promote it.”
Writing in the BMJ, John Britton, director
of the UK Centre for Tobacco and
Alcohol Studies at the University of
Nottingham, said the findings suggested
e-cigarette use could contribute to falling
smoking rates.
He said: “This significant year-on-year
fall indicates that something in UK
tobacco control policy is working,
and successful quitting through
substitution with e-cigarettes is one
likely major contributor.”
Alison Cox, director of prevention at
Cancer Research UK, said: “E-cigarettes
can play a role in helping people quit
smoking and the evidence so far
shows e-cigarettes are much safer than
tobacco. This study shows the positive
impact they’ve had on helping people
give up the deadly addiction.
“We’ll continue to fund research into
e-cigarettes to build our understanding,
and encourage people to combine the
most popular method with the most
effective -- Stop Smoking Services. But
this study reassures us of the promise
these products have.”
* Tobacco kills more than 100,000 people
a year in the UK and is still the number
one preventable cause of cancer.