Last April, the UK announced that one million smokers would be given free vape kits to help them quit smoking, while pregnant smokers would be offered up to £400 as an incentive to stop. The “swap to stop” free vape policy is the first of its kind and the Health Minister had highlighted that the local strategy would focus on “helping people to quit” rather than imposing bans.
Conducted with the aim of testing the effectivity of this approach, the UEA study found that the measures appealed to most of the 136 participants they interviewed. “Our research shows that people who quit smoking using commercially purchased vapes believe they might have benefitted from the NHS providing e-cigarettes and support if it had been available to them when they were quitting.”
However added the researchers, not all the participants were in favour of accessing vapes via the NHS as some consider them consumer products that they can shop for themselves, rather than medical aids. Moreover, some of the participants said that there is no one size fits all in regards to device preference and that they would like to be able to shop around for the device and flavours of their preference.
Both commercial and medical routes for obtaining vapes are recommended
To this effect, the research team concluded that there is room for both commercial and medical routes to vaping products for smoking cessation. “Our research shows that people who quit smoking using commercially purchased vapes believe they might have benefitted from the NHS providing e-cigarettes and support if it had been available to them when they were quitting,” said Dr. Emma Ward, from UEA’s Norwich Medical School.
She added that it is unlikely that one type of vape will suit everyone seeking to quit and that their study underlined the importance for some to able to choose vaping products in a commercial environment. Moreover, some vapers believe they have benefitted by being able to shop around for the type of device and flavours that work for them.
Vape retailer offered financial incentives for Stoptober
Meanwhile last year, the UK’s largest e-cig retailer Vape Club offered £500 in cash to five people if they managed to quit smoking during Stoptober. The campaign is organized yearly by National Health Service (NHS) UK and encourages smokers to quit cigarettes for the month of October, with the hope that this will encourage them to stop smoking for good. The campaign offers a number of suggestions to smokers wishing to quit, and highly recommends the combination of behavioral support and the use of Nicotine Replacement Therapies (NRTs) including vaping products.
The Cash to Quit Challenge organized by Vape Club was launched in response to findings by another study from UEA, indicating that half of all smokers would quit given a financial incentive. “Stoptober is a great opportunity to quit smoking if you’re looking to stub it out. Over two million smokers have used the initiative, now in its 10th year, to give quitting a go. With people feeling the pinch as the cost of living rises and rises, we wanted to offer both our expertise and financial support to help people quit – and save thousands each year,” said Vape Club Director Dan Marchant.
E-cigarettes have been amongst the suggested replacement therapies for adults by Stoptober, long before the UK endorsed their use officially. The devices have been the most commonly used smoking cessation tool, and data collected via several smoking surveys indicate that the products are smokers’ preferred smoking cessation aides, as they mimic the action of smoking, making the transition from smoking to not smoking an easier one.
Moreover, a guidance published in 2021 by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), stated that any approved vaping products, will be made available for doctors to prescribe. “This country continues to be a global leader on healthcare, whether it’s our Covid-19 vaccine rollout or our innovative public health measures reducing people’s risk of serious illness,” said Health Secretary Sajid Javid at the time.
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