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E-Cigarettes Linked To Helping People Quit Smoking, Says Study (theverge.com)
According to a new study, electronic cigarettes help people trying to quit smoking. The Verge reports: For the study, published today in the journal BMJ, researchers analyzed survey data from over 160,000 people spanning almost 15 years. They found that smokers who used e-cigs tried to quit smoking more often and succeeded (for at least three months) more often than smokers who didn't use e-cigs. Overall, more people quit in the latest year that data was available -- the 2014 -- 15 year -- than in the 2010 -- 11 year. Today's study didn't address whether e-cigs are luring people who would otherwise be nonsmokers. But it did find that e-cigs do have a role in helping people quit. The researchers looked at several population surveys that cover the years 2001 to 2015. These surveys provided smoking-cessation rates, and the most recent survey, from 2014 to 2015, had information about e-cigarette usage. The results show that 65 percent of e-cigarette users had tried to quit smoking, versus 40 percent of people who smoked but didn't use e-cigs. About 8 percent of e-cig users succeeded in quitting for at least three months, compared to about 5 percent of non-users. Overall, the number of people who quit smoking increased by 1.1 percentage points in 2015 from 2011. This might not seem that impressive, but it still represents about 350,000 people.
There's a certain kind of mentality that drives some people to see vaping as just another form of smoking, which they also consider to be evil. It's why we see these attempts at laws, particularly under the "think of the children" banner.
That these people group vaping in with smoking shows that they really don't care about health. If these things help with smoking cessation, and they don't carry the passive smoking risks, then why are we being told to go stand with the smokers? I'm actually trying to avoid smoking, yet I'm having to go stand in an area that exposes me to the risks of passive smoking.
Such things are driven by emotion and ideology rather than any serious concern for health.
-- Using the preview button since 2005
I quit a couple of years ago after being an nicotine addict (quite heavy) for about 20 years ... One morning i just stopped..
I did fail a couple of times due to different circumstances, but it was just a smoke or two while being weak..
What i learnt from this...
- First week is terrible.. Try to have everything you need at home, and loads of things to keep you occupied.
- Patches just prolongs your addiction.. Try to stay away from them... (but we are all different)
- Stay away from secondhand smoke for the first 2 months or so..... For me it caused big cravings that where really hard to ignore..
- Stay away from nicotine completely at least for the first 2 years.. A single smoke during this time can make you have another round of cravings.
- For the first 6 months try to stay away from stress.... At least the one that is continuous for multiple weeks.
If you tell, and possibly plan for things in advance, most people around you will understand and even help you.. Including your boss..
But all of this is my own experience from the ordeal.. But i hope it may help others that want to quit too..
The feeling from waking up in the morning without wanting to have a smoke... And not stressing out because you are out of smokes before going to bed... Or spending 12+ hours on a long flight... Or having thousands of $ extra per year to spend on things i like.. Or the realization when you eat food after a few months and realize that everything tastes more now when your sense of smell and taste has been restored. Or missing to go outside in the middle of the winter just to have smoke..
Good luck to anyone else that is planning to quit... Remember to plan a bit ahead.. If you fail try to learn from why you failed and jump back on the horse..