Led by the MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit at the University of Glasgow, this study highlighted once again that e-cigarettes are effective smoking cessation tools and that they have the potential to either widen or narrow socioeconomic health inequalities.
The researchers analyzed data from almost 40,000 young people and adults and found that vaping was still found to be rare in this age group in general, with only about 3% of them using e-cigarettes. Meanwhile, among over 18,000 adults (aged 16+) who had ever smoked, those in disadvantaged households were less likely to be ex-smokers, but this difference was smaller among adults who vaped.
Lead study author, Dr. Michael Green, said that it is important to differentiate between vapers who used to smoke and those who did not. “Whether someone smokes is important because, while vaping among those who have never smoked might be a concern, vaping among smokers and ex-smokers is more desirable because it can involve people switching away from smoking.”
Green also pointed out that adult smokers from advantaged backgrounds were likely to quit smoking successfully, and that however this inequality was smaller among those who vaped. “Our findings suggest that e-cigarettes may be helping disadvantaged smokers to quit. This could potentially have a big impact on inequalities in health because giving up smoking is very beneficial for people’s health.”