A new study being published in the American Journal of
Health Behavior suggests that electronic cigarettes might encourage
hard-core tobacco puffers to significantly cut back on traditional cigarettes, even
when they say they don't want to.
The pilot study found that of 28 adult smokers—none of whom
were interested in quitting—25, or nearly 90 percent, reduced their use of
tobacco cigarettes during a week in which they smoked e-cigarettes from leading
maker NJOY.
Nearly one-third of those smokers cut their tobacco
cigarette use in half, and four of the participants told researchers that they
were smoking no traditional cigarettes at all by the end of the weeklong trial
of NJOY Kings.
 |
| Buy Electronic Cigarettes Online |
Overall, the mean reduction in participants' cigarettes
smoked per day was 39 percent, according to the study.
The research report also found that the e-cig users'
nicotine absorption was comparable to that with nicotine-replacement products
approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The report noted that "these
results suggest that this [NJOY] product delivered enough nicotine to suppress
craving."
Further research needed
Mitchell Nides, who co-led the research with Scott Leischow
of the Mayo Clinic, called the results "a very good signal to go
forward" with more research on whether e-cigarettes can lead to long-term
cessation of tobacco cigarette use.
He noted that the study did not follow up with to see if
participants' tobacco use remained lower after the trial.
"They have tremendous potential as [a]
smoking-cessation aid," said Nides, who has conducted studies on tobacco
cessation for more than 25 years. He added that he was "surprised" by
the four participants that stopped using cigarettes altogether.
"I think there's real potential for efficacy, with
potentially few side effects," he said. "Obviously, more research is
needed."
The study, which was funded by NJOY, comes at a key moment
for e-cigarettes, which deliver nicotine by vaporizing a nicotine-infused
liquid for inhalation without the smell of tobacco cigarettes.
E-cigarette sales have exploded, and are expected to reach
as much as $1 billion this year (though still a tiny fraction of the $80
billion in annual sales for tobacco cigarettes).
Regulation ahead?
The fast-growing market, combined with the desire of many
smokers to quit, has drawn the keen attention of Big Tobacco. All three of the
major companies will enter the e-cig business this year. At the same time, the
FDA is poised to issue proposed regulations on the category, which could affect
sales.
Dr. Richard Carmona, who was a fierce critic of tobacco as
surgeon general under President George W. Bush, joined NJOY's board of
directors this spring and is chairman of its scientific advisory committee.
Carmona told CNBC.com that "we agree that no health
claims should be made" for e-cigarettes "without the appropriate
science" to support them. But, he added, "if we stopped tobacco use
today, 80 percent of the lung cancers would go away—not today, but in the
future.
"There's no tobacco" in e-cigarettes, he said.
"We just have a different delivery system [for nicotine] that reinforces
the habit of holding a cigarette, but without those toxic, carcinogenic
properties."
Echoing Nides, Carmona said the next step should be finding
out if e-cigarettes can help traditional users kick their tobacco habit in the
long term. If they do, Carmona said, e-cigs could be a major factor for
"harm reduction" among tobacco users.
But the study itself concludes by saying "toxicological
research is also needed to assess whether [e-cigarettes] deliver significant
amounts of any potentially harmful substances besides nicotine, which is a
relatively benign substance despite its primary role in dependence."
Dr. Alexander Prokhorov, a behavioral scientist who
specializes in tobacco at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center,
said nicotine dependence should not be discounted and that e-cigs could be a
"gateway" to tobacco use by young people.
And he emphasized that the jury remains out on the question
of the health risks of e-cigs.
Article Credit: http://www.cnbc.com
No comments:
Post a Comment