E-cigarettes help twice as many smokers quit as nicotine replacement therapy, trial finds

Electronic cigarettes were more effective than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) in helping smokers to quit in a UK randomised trial, nearly doubling the one year abstinence rate.1

“This is the first trial to test the efficacy of modern e-cigarettes in helping smokers quit,” said the lead author, Peter Hajek, professor of clinical psychology and director of the Health and Lifestyle Research Unit at Queen Mary University of London. “E-cigarettes were almost twice as effective as the ‘gold standard’ combination of nicotine replacement products.”

E-cigarettes are increasingly used for quitting smoking, but limited evidence exists for their effectiveness when compared with nicotine products approved for quitting smoking.

“Although a large number of smokers report that they have quit smoking successfully with the help of e-cigarettes, health professionals have been …