Research suggests vaping can wean smokers off cigarettes

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A new study suggests that e-cigarettes are effective at helping people stop smoking.

The trial, funded by the British government, followed nearly 900 smokers over the course of one year. They were randomly divided into groups, which were either provided with e-cigarettes or other nicotine replacement products like patches and gum. The participants were provided some counseling over the course of the trial, and they also had to agree to chemical breath testing. By the end of the study, 18 percent of the e-cigarette users were smoke-free compared to the nearly 10 percent of those using other products.

“This tells us what we’ve always believed,” said Troy LeBlanc, the owner of Derb-E Cigs. “The whole point of e-cigarettes is to help you quit smoking. We’ve never said that e-cigarettes are good for you. We’ve said they’re good to help some people.”

E-cigarettes do not have tobacco in them. But the liquid, which you inhale as a vapor, contains nicotine. LeBlanc said in his stores, sales associates can help customers make a game plan to wean off nicotine by changing the concentration of the liquid in the e-cigarette over time.

“They can set you up where you start at a certain milligram,” LeBlanc said. “And you work your way down and eventually to zero. I have thousands of customers that are no longer my customers, because they’ve quit both smoking and e-cigs.”

The Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky agrees that vaping can help adults, but it is still illegal for anyone under the age of 18 to have or use e-cigarettes. There has been a nationwide spike in teenage vaping over the past couple years.

“I’m excited about research that shows we could have some harm reduction,” said Bonnie Hackbarth, referring to the adult study. “But I am concerned that we have to do what we can right now to protect kids from using these products.”

Bonnie Hackbarth, a spokeswoman for the foundation, said one in five Kentucky teenagers use e-cigarettes.

“Kids need to know they’re not safe,” she said. “We know short-term the impact of e-cigarettes on youth is bad. They are nicotine products, and they can harm that developing brain.”

While e-cigarettes might be helpful for adults to quit smoking, the foundation emphasized they are not safe products for teenagers to use and become addicted to. Hackbarth suggested ways to keep e-cigarettes out of teenagers’ hands would be to limit where they can be sold and eliminate the flavored liquids.

“We have the promise of a device that is supposed to reduce harm,” Hackbarth said. “But we have the reality of a device that is clearly marketed to kids and that has addicted a whole new generation at epidemic levels to a nicotine product."

No one under the age of 18 is allowed to buy vaping product, and LeBlanc said his stores are committed to following all rules and regulations. He said his sales associates will not sell products to anyone underage or to anyone who does not currently smoke.

“Nothing foreign you put in your body is good for someone,” LeBlanc said. “I’m not saying it’s a safe alternative, but it’s definitely safer. To be honest with you, my message is that any nicotine is bad for you. We prefer to stay as a tool to help people stop smoking; not as a tool to help people start vaping.”

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