People who resorted to e-cigarettes were 60 percent more successful in quitting smoking than those who tried kicking the habit through nicotine replacement therapies or willpower alone.
The findings were the result of a survey conducted by University College London researchers on 6,000 smokers who wanted to quit smoking. Researchers noted that 20 percent of them were able to quit smoking because they had resorted to e-cigarettes, which sums up to a 60 percent higher success rate than those who didn't use the device, according to The Telegraph.
''E-cigarettes could substantially improve public health because of their widespread appeal and the huge health gains associated with stopping smoking," lead author Professor Robert West said. ''However, we should also recognise that the strongest evidence remains for use of the NHS stop-smoking services. These almost triple a smoker's odds of successfully quitting compared with going it alone or relying on over-the-counter products.''
Findings of this study debunk findings of a previous study by researchers from the University of California who said that e-cigarettes didn't help smokers quit the habit. In that study, only 7 percent young adults used e-cigarettes to quit smoking.
In September 2013, the CDC announced that the percentage of high school students who had tried e-cigarettes had more than doubled within a year, from 4.7 percent in 2011 to 10 percent in 2012.
Young parents have resorted to using e-cigarettes because they feel the device is safer for people around them despite the lack of evidence proving the same, the findings of another study revealed. More than 80 percent of the participants said they did so because they felt it was safer for people around them. Another 76 percent said that these electronic devices were more acceptable to non-tobacco users while 72 percent said that they preferred e-cigs because they can be used in places where smoking is otherwise prohibited.
Very recently, the U.S. Food and Drugs Administration proposed the first set of e-cigarette rules in an attempt to curb the growing trend, which has raised serious concerns worldwide. The new rule will ban the sale of new tobacco products like e-cigarettes, flavored cigars and nicotine gels to minors. Last month, a group of Democrats in Congress released a report accusing manufacturers of e-cigarettes of aggressively targeting minors with marketing tactics that would be illegal if used for traditional cigarettes.
Authors of the current study said that it was too soon to say whether and which e-cigarette products could be made available, as there needed to be more research into the safety of long-term use. However, they did confirm that the contents of the e-cigarette vapors are likely much less risky than smoking.
