Prescribing e-cigarettes on the NHS could help up to 40% of smokers quit, study claims

Researchers say vaping on the NHS can even help “hardened” smokers quit.

In a pilot project, more than 300 traditional smokers received support from the health service’s smoking cessation service, along with a £25 voucher for a vaporizer shop.

Four out of ten people who used the coupons said they had quit smoking completely within a month.

Although the drop rate dropped to 15% after three months, the researchers said it was still a “huge success”.

The pilot project reached approximately 750,000 adults in Norfolk.

But the University of East Anglia team says the initial results are so good they should be distributed nationwide.

They want family doctors to be able to prescribe e-cigarettes to patients struggling to break their habit.

However, some scientists are still concerned that vaping may also be harmful to people’s health.

Studies suggest it may increase the risk of cancer and lung disease, although not as much as conventional cigarettes.

About one in eight Britons and one in eight Americans now say they smoke, compared to almost half of Britons in the 1970s.

But during the pandemic, use among people over the age of 30 increased by 25%, equivalent to more than 600,000 new smokers.

The government aims to reduce the number of smokers to just 5% by 2030, with a review calling for the legal age to be raised to 21 this summer.

But the East Anglia researchers said the prevalence of smoking is much higher in less favored areas, including Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, where one in three workers smoke.

They warned of the “urgent need” to reduce the number of smokers to reduce premature deaths and address health disparities.

But the team cautioned that the initial costs of vaping create a “barrier” for those who want to use them to quit smoking.

To address this issue, the researchers partnered with primary care physicians and NHS Smokefree Norfolk’s non-smoking service to provide a pilot project to people over 18 in Great Yarmouth between December 2019 and July 2021.

Under the plan, 668 smokers who made unsuccessful attempts to quit were referred to Smokefree Norfolk by their family doctor, other NHS doctors or themselves.

With a mean age of 41, one-third of referrals had long-term health problems and 37% had mental health problems.

Only 340 participants used the £25 voucher that can be spent on a vape device and starter kit.

Volunteers were asked to purchase their own refills and were encouraged to attend follow-up appointments with a smoking cessation counselor.

The results, published in Nicotine and Tobacco Research, show that 143 people quit smoking within a month.

This equates to 42% of coupon users and 21% of program applicants.

However, three months after using the coupon, only 50 people were still non-smokers: 15 percent of people treated and 7.5 percent of those reported.

The program has now been expanded in Norfolk, and researchers hope it can be implemented nationwide to reduce smoking rates.

Lead researcher Professor Caitlin Notley said: “Studies show that vaping is an effective way to quit smoking compared to nicotine replacement therapies such as patches and gum.

“Our research has previously shown that they can be particularly helpful in helping people not just quit but quit forever.”

He added that the program has seen the NHS acknowledge that “other forms of smoking cessation support don’t work for everyone”.

Professor Notley said the findings are “particularly important as they help those who have repeatedly tried to quit smoking.”

“Overall the design has been well received by smokers as it provides a convenient way to vape. Family doctors supported the program and appreciated the possibility of offering an alternative to established smokers,” he added.