- Smokers given flavoured vapes were three times more likely to quit than those using gum or lozenges
- Nearly one in three vape users stayed smoke-free after six months, versus one in 10 using nicotine replacement therapy (NRT)
- Fewer side effects were reported among vape users compared to those using NRT
- Study focused on low-income Australians receiving government benefits
Vaping is significantly more effective than traditional NRT for helping low-income smokers quit, according to a major new Australian study.
The research, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, found that smokers who used flavoured nicotine vapes were nearly three times as likely to remain cigarette-free after six months than those given NRT.
The study focused on a group often left behind in smoking cessation efforts – people experiencing social and economic disadvantage. All 1,045 participants were daily smokers receiving a government pension or benefit and were motivated to quit.
Vapes ‘more effective’ at smoking cessation
“Vaporised nicotine products (VNPs, or vapes) were more effective than nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation,” wrote the research team, led by Associate Professor Ryan Courtney of the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales.
The randomised trial, conducted between March 2021 and December 2022, assigned participants to one of two groups: one received an eight-week supply of nicotine gum or lozenges; the other received an eight-week supply of e-liquid with either tobacco, menthol or fruit flavours, along with a vape. All participants also received supportive text messages over five weeks.
At the seven-month follow-up, researchers used carbon monoxide breath tests to verify who had managed to stay off cigarettes for six continuous months. Almost a third (28.4 per cent) of those in the vape group had quit, compared to just 9.6 per cent in the NRT group.
A powerful alternative for low income smokers
The study reported a “>99 per cent posterior probability that VNP is superior,” with a posterior risk difference estimate of 18.7 per cent. The results suggest vaping could offer a powerful alternative for smokers in lower-income brackets who have traditionally been harder to reach with existing quit-smoking aids.
“Findings indicate that VNPs were more effective than NRT for smoking cessation in this population,” the authors concluded. “Given the challenges for cessation among these socially disadvantaged populations, VNPs present a promising treatment option for this priority group.”
Importantly, vape users in the study also reported fewer side effects than those on traditional nicotine therapies. There were 355 adverse events reported among 237 participants in the vape group, compared to 442 events in 278 people in the NRT group.
Reported side effects were not detailed in the summary data, but the lower rate of issues suggests vapes may be more tolerable for many users.
The findings add weight to a growing body of evidence that vaping can be a more effective tool than older nicotine replacement methods at helping smokers to quit, although the researchers cautioned that vaping is not risk free.
The U.S. government has severely limited the number of flavoured tobacco products that are legally available. Kid-friendly flavours like fruit, menthol and dessert, are sold illegally and have been fueling an explosion in retail sales of vapes, according to ABC News.
Meanwhile in Australia, vapes are only available to buy through pharmacies. This has led to an out-of-control black market with criminal gangs fighting for control over illegal supplies through tobacco shops.
With black market sales now outstripping legal ones by almost 1,700 to one, experts warn the country is losing the “war on nicotine.”
