UK Survey Analyzes Vaping Patterns in England

Gathering data from Smoking in England, a portal through which major findings from the Smoking Toolkit Study and other national data are made available to policy makers, clinicians, researchers, journalists and the general public, the current paper aimed to analyze how e-cigarette use has evolved over time.

Diane Caruana

September 7, 2022

The research team analyzed data from the portal with the aim of determining any patterns related to how e-cigarette use has progressed over time. They also assessed any changes in the use of other aids to reduce or quit smoking, whilst considering performance indicators such as smoking cessation rates, attempts to stop smoking, success of attempts to stop smoking. They also analyzed use amongst people who never smoked, or had stopped for over a year. Moreover they estimated the resulting changes in the total tobacco and nicotine market.

In line with previous findings, the study found that e-cig use has remained relatively stable and is mostly considered for smoking cessation.

“Use of e-cigarettes in adult population has remained relatively stable since late 2013
Use of Juul and heated tobacco products is rare
E-cigarette use by never smokers remains very rare but use among long-term ex-smokers has grown
E-cigarette use in smokers and recent ex-smokers has plateaued
Around half of e-cigarette users and the majority of NRT users are ‘dual users’ (also smoke)
The proportion of daily e-cigarette and NRT users who are ‘dual users’ is lower”

Distributing starter kits at homeless centres

Earlier this year, another study looked into the feasibility of distributing e-cigarettes to smokers attending homeless centres in Britain, with the aim of improving their health and ease the financial burden of purchasing cigarettes.

As part of this earlier trial, four homeless centres in Great Britain were allocated to either a Usual Care (UC) or E-Cigarette (EC) group. The 32 participants in the UC group, received smoking cessation advice and were offered support by a local Stop Smoking Service. The 48 EC group participants were given a vape starter kit with a 4-week e-liquid supply.

The compiled results had indicated that in both groups, depression and anxiety scores declined over the course of the study. However, the group who received vape starter kits indicated more smoking cessation success. “The EC intervention was well received with minimal negative effects and very few unintended consequences (e.g. lost, theft, adding illicit substances),” reported the researchers.