# E-Cigarettes are twice as effective as NRT



## Hooked (31/1/19)

OLIVER KERSHAW / JANUARY 31, 2019
Founder of e-cigarette-forum.com and co-founder of vaping.com

"A study published today in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that e-cigarettes are almost twice as effective as NRT in helping smokers remain abstinent from cigarettes.

The study team, from Queen Mary University of London, saw that 18% of participants who were given vaping products and a four-week behavioural course remained smoke-free after a year, compared with 10% of those given medical nicotine such as patches or gum. Participants were given a vaping starter-kit and advised to make their own future purchasing decisions.

Previous e-cigarette studies using the “gold standard” randomised-controlled methodology were conducted years ago and based on a single (and no longer available) model of e-cigarette, which was poor at delivering nicotine. Even still, those studies showed a modest level of efficacy, approximately equal to that of patches and gums. The lack of a clear advantage, however, has long lead medical professionals to be sceptical as to the need for vaping products over existing, medicinal, treatments.

Vaping technology has developed considerably since those original studies and consumers today have access to a wide range of products. The Queen Mary study is uniquely valid in that they allowed their participants to try out different products to find out what suits them. Unfortunately, vaping products in the EU are hampered by regulations limiting cartridge size and nicotine strength. The limitations were imposed to prevent issues of toxicity or overdose and were based on inaccurate assessments of the toxicity of nicotine. Countries without these restrictions have not seen problems with vaping products commonly available.

In light of this study policymakers will be challenged to assess the likelihood that e-cigarette efficacy may be higher if those restrictions were relaxed. One indication that this might be true is that participants rated the products as being more satisfying than NRT, but less satisfying than cigarettes. It’s probable that they were not getting sufficient nicotine from each puff, given the strength limitations. Small cartridge and tank sizes may represent a “hassle factor” - a consumer pain point that makes the products harder to use." 

(OLIVER KERSHAW / JANUARY 31, 2019
https://vaping.com/blog/news/e-cigarettes-are-twice-as-effective-as-nrt-landmark-uk-study-shows/
Founder of e-cigarette-forum.com and co-founder of vaping.com

Reactions: Like 3


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## Puff the Magic Dragon (1/2/19)

Thanks for sharing this @Hooked .

This confirms what most of us know. Almost all of us gave up smoking using e-cigarettes. If anything I would have guessed that vaping would have been even more effective.

A trial with almost a thousand participants done by respected organisations should not be ignored.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 2


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