Cameron, director of biosciences at the American Council on Science and Health, recently released his views on the report on e-cigarette use among young people in the UK, saying a recent survey conducted in schools in England provides more evidence that e-cigarettes are an effective smoking cessation tool.
The National Health Service has just published the results of a survey on smoking, alcohol consumption and e-cigarette smoking among young people in the UK. A media release found a slight increase in e-cigarette smoking among young people between 2018 and 2021, from 6% to 9%. An official from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health told the media that he was deeply troubled by the increase in e-cigarette smoking among teenagers.
Cameron said that while he too is troubled by underage nicotine use, a closer look at the results reveals some very good news: youth smoking (cigarette) rates in England continue to decline, and e-cigarettes have been an important part of this public health victory. Wherever you are, this is a result worth celebrating because it adds to the existing evidence supporting e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation tool.
E-cigarettes promote smoking cessation
The survey is conducted every two years among 11- to 15-year-olds. This special report includes responses from 9,289 participants from 119 schools. Most of the youth who used e-cigarettes were or had been smokers.
The report noted that 56% of those who quit smoking were current e-cigarette users. In addition, regular e-cigarette users more than doubled as regular smokers; from 29% in 2018 to 61% in 2021. This means that e-cigarettes, which are widely considered less harmful than smoking, have helped replace some or all of cigarette consumption for many young people.
In other words, the increase in e-cigarettes largely reflects the decline in smoking. No one wants teens to use nicotine-containing products. But if they are going to violate public health rules, as teens are used to doing, e-cigarettes are a less harmful way to do so.
