We dive deep into the effectiveness of vaping for smoking cessation to learn more about vaping and what it offers smokers to help them kick their habit.
Evaluating The Effectiveness of Vaping For Smoking Cessation
Smoking has long been associated with a myriad of detrimental health effects, ranging from respiratory disorders to cardiovascular diseases. Despite widespread awareness of these risks, quitting smoking remains a formidable task for many individuals. As traditional methods of smoking cessation have yielded mixed success rates, a new contender has emerged on the scene: vaping.
But just how effective is vaping as a smoking cessation tool? We’re going to take a look at how vaping has risen to become one of the more popular choices for nicotine replacement and its many benefits that play an important part in helping vapers quit smoking.
The rise of vaping
Vaping has seen a monumental rise in popularity in recent years. It has grown to become one of the most widely used methods of smoking cessation for a variety of different reasons. In fact, more than 50,000 smokers in 2017 were believed to have stopped smoking with the help of vaping products. Now in 2023, studies found that nicotine vaping products were the most widely used method of smoking cessation with 27.2% of smokers using vapes when trying to quit smoking. The attraction of vaping largely stems from its promise to deliver nicotine in a more flavourful, and stylish manner.
With each year, vaping popularity is steadily growing and this is thanks to a number of factors including innovations in vaping technology, greater marketing efforts and different ranges of e-liquids. Vape devices, with their sleek design and wide range of flavours, have carved out a niche market that resonates with a generation increasingly conscious of health concerns.
How does vaping help smokers quit?
Range of e-liquids
One of the strengths of vaping lies in the vast array of e-liquid options available to users. E-liquids come in various flavours, nicotine strengths, and different VG/PG ratios. This variety caters to individual preferences and nicotine requirements, allowing for a highly personalised approach to smoking cessation.
For those who desire a nicotine-free option, there are also e-liquids available with zero nicotine content. This is particularly beneficial for individuals who have successfully reduced their nicotine intake and are ready to embark on the final stage of their journey towards becoming completely nicotine-free.
Vape kits
As well as a range of different types of e-liquid, there are also many different types of vape kits to choose from. Vaping is not a one-size-fits-all solution, and vape kits offer customisable options to suit different needs. These range from pod kits that are great at providing a straightforward introduction to vaping to more advanced devices that offer tonnes of power and a range of customisable features.
Pod systems are particularly popular as they’re user-friendly and require minimal setup, meaning you don’t need any prior knowledge to know how to work one. They are also great for ex-smokers as they can hold higher strength nicotine e-liquids, with some devices also offering more features than others, such as adjustable airflows, variable wattage and OLED screens to keep track of your settings.
On the other hand, advanced vape kits offer users a much wider range of settings, features and vaping modes that enable individuals to fine-tune their vaping experience. This level of control can be particularly beneficial during the smoking cessation process. However, it’s important to point out that you cannot use high strength nicotine e-liquids with higher-powered, sub-ohm vape kits. This is because they will deliver far too much nicotine in one draw, and the throat hit would be very unpleasant. Advanced vape kits are best for those who are close to quitting their nicotine habit altogether or light smokers, not for newly transitioned, heavy smokers.
More control over nicotine intake
Unlike smoking which only offers a single nicotine strength, vaping provides a much wider range of different nicotine strengths to choose from. If you are a heavy smoker, for example, you could use 20mg e-liquids to help keep the cravings at bay. However, if you are more of a light smoker who still finds cravings kick in after a while, lower nicotine strength juices are available too, including 3mg, 5mg, 10mg and 12mg.
These varying strengths also provide vapers the ability to have more control over their experience, as they can slowly decrease their nicotine strength over time. Smokers can start with e-liquids containing nicotine concentrations similar to their usual cigarette brand and gradually reduce the nicotine levels. This controlled reduction helps the body adjust to lower nicotine levels, reducing withdrawal symptoms and cravings.
Psychological aspects of smoking cessation
One of the key challenges when attempting to quit smoking is not just the physical addiction to nicotine, but also the psychological and behavioural patterns that have been ingrained over time. This is where vaping can play a significant role. Vaping addresses the psychological aspects of smoking by mimicking the familiar hand-to-mouth action and inhalation that smokers are accustomed to. It provides a familiar sensory experience, helping individuals manage the psychological cravings that often accompany the act of smoking.
Moreover, vaping also helps in breaking the habitual cues associated with smoking. Whether it’s the after-meal cigarette or the first smoke of the day, these cues can be powerful triggers for cravings. Vaping offers an alternative way to engage with these cues without the harmful effects of traditional cigarettes, aiding in the process of reprogramming behavioural patterns and reducing the urge to smoke.
If you’re having a hard time breaking out of these psychological patterns but don’t want to intake nicotine, vaping also offers a range of 0mg nicotine e-liquids. This provides vapers a way to slowly break their patterns and cues without having to worry about the nicotine side of the addiction.
Does vaping help you to quit smoking?
So, the big question is – does vaping actually help you to quit smoking? Research found that in 2021, those who began vaping as a way to quit smoking were twice as likely to leave cigarette smoking behind as those who used other methods of smoking cessation. Some smokers find it easier to slowly reduce nicotine levels by choosing e-liquids with lower nicotine concentrations. This approach allows them to gradually wean off nicotine, potentially leading to smoking cessation over time. For these individuals, vaping serves as a damage reduction strategy, offering a less harmful alternative while working towards quitting nicotine altogether.
Health benefits
Short-term benefits
When evaluating the effectiveness of vaping for smoking cessation, it’s crucial to delve into the health considerations and safety aspects associated with this alternative. In the short term, some individuals experience noticeable benefits when transitioning to vaping. Improved lung function, enhanced sense of taste, and the absence of the noxious odour often linked to smoking are among the immediate advantages.
Long-term benefits
Looking at the long-term benefits is a little bit more tricky, as vaping is still in its relatively early days and so many studies on the long-term benefits are yet to be done. However, due to the fact that e-liquids do not include any of the harmful toxins that cigarettes due, it could lead to a substantial decrease in smoking-related diseases.
Cigarettes are believed to have around 7,000 chemicals in them, with at least 69 of these believed to cause cancer and even more believed to be harmful. With vaping, all of these are removed.
Conclusion
In conclusion, vaping has proven itself to be not only a popular tool for smoking cessation, but an effective one too. With more smokers deciding to try out vaping every year, its benefits are being more widely recognised. Vaping offers smokers far more control and customisation over their nicotine, from different types of vape kits and e-liquids to being able to slowly reduce their nicotine intake over time.
As vaping grows more popular, so too will the research that goes into it as well as more room for innovation to help provide smokers with an increasingly easier way to kick their smoking habits. If you’re looking to try to leave cigarettes behind, head on over to Vaping 101, an online vaping store that offers a range of different types of vape kits and e-liquids to help you make a smooth transition into vaping.
