Jeffb Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/07/electronic-cigarettes-quit-smoking-nicotine-patches_n_3881863.html Electronic cigarettes, which provide nicotine without the cigarette smoke toxins, work just as well as nicotine patches in helping people to quit smoking, according to a new study in the medical journal The Lancet. New Zealand researchers found that the smoking cessation success rate was about the same for smokers who tried to quit with electronic cigarettes and those who tried with nicotine patches. Indeed, similar results were even found for would-be quitters given placebo e-cigarettes -- that is, without nicotine. Study participants who were unable to quit smoking completely still reduced their use of tobacco cigarettes when they were also using the e-version -- more even than those who used nicotine patches. "Our study establishes a critical benchmark for e-cigarette performance compared to nicotine patches and placebo e-cigarettes, but there is still so much that is unknown about the effectiveness and long-term effects of e-cigarettes," said Chris Bullen, director of the National Institute for Health Innovation at The University of Auckland, in a statement. "Given the increasing popularity of these devices in many countries, and the accompanying regulatory uncertainty and inconsistency, larger, longer-term trials are urgently needed to establish whether these devices might be able to fulfill their potential as effective and popular smoking cessation aids," he added. The findings are based on data from 657 smokers trying to quit, who were recruited through newspaper ads. Of those, 292 were assigned to use e-cigarettes with 16 milligrams of nicotine for 13 weeks, 292 were assigned to use nicotine patches for 13 weeks, and 73 were assigned to use placebo e-cigarettes that didn't have any nicotine in them. Researchers followed up with study participants after the 13 weeks to see if they had successfully abstained from cigarettes. Of those assigned to the e-cigarettes with nicotine, 7.3 percent had abstained from smoking during that entire period. Of those assigned to nicotine patches, 5.8 percent had abstained. And a little more than 4 percent of those assigned to the placebo e-cigarettes abstained. Researchers said the differences among those percentages were not statistically significant, meaning the e-cigarette and nicotine patch groups had about the same smoking cessation success rate. Among the majority of participants who didn't quit smoking entirely, 57 percent of those assigned to the e-cigarettes cut their use of regular cigarettes at least in half, compared with only 41 percent of those assigned to the nicotine patches. After the study was over, those who had been assigned to electronic cigarettes, both the placebo and nicotine versions, were more likely to continue their use: About one in three kept smoking them, compared to less than one in 10 who continued to use the nicotine patches. E-cigarette users were also more likely than patch users to recommend the product to others. In a related commentary in The Lancet, Peter Hajek, of the Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine and the U.K. Center for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies at the Queen Mary University of London, wrote that while much more research is needed, the findings suggest that e-cigarettes can help quit-minded smokers to stop the habit and lead to less use of traditional cigarettes. At the same time, he acknowledged the concerns that e-cigarettes could actually increase smoking by "renormalizing" the behavior: There is an obvious source of evidence as to whether use of ecigarettes leads to an increase or reduction in tobacco smoking: the trajectories of sales of ecigarettes and tobacco cigarettes. If growing sales of ecigarettes coincide with increased sales of tobacco cigarettes, tobacco control activists arguing for restriction of ecigarette availability would be vindicated. If traditional cigarette sales decline as ecigarette sales increase, it would suggest that ecigarettes are normalising nonsmoking and that it is in the interest of public health to promote and support their development rather than try to restrict it. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report recently found that electronic cigarette use is up in a demographic who likely aren't trying to quit entrenched smoking habits: middle and high school students. According to the report, 1.78 million youths in middle and high school said they had tried an e-cigarette at least once in the last year. The percentage of high schoolers who said they had tried an e-cigarette rose from 4.7 percent in 2011 to 10 percent in 2012. The Food and Drug Administration has yet to regulate electronic cigarettes, though it has said it plans to do so soon. Not much information exists so far on the product's long-term safety. Some research has been done on e-cigarettes' effect on the heart (there didn't seem to be any), their effect on the lungs (they appeared to increase airway resistance), and the chemicals they contain (the FDA found two brands contained carcinogens and an anti-freeze chemical). wizard46304 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irwink Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 Just saw this report on local tv news a few minutes ago. They actually managed to report the story 'as is' without the usual negative spin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subnuclear Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 imagine how much better the e cigg results would have been if they had given them good PV's with flavor choices lol. Bebop 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irwink Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 imagine how much better the e cigg results would have been if they had given them good PV's with flavor choices lol. Yeah that occurred to me as well. Bebop 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquatroy Posted September 8, 2013 Share Posted September 8, 2013 Thanks Jeff ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thesheepdog Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 patches made me ill and wanting to up chuck. I control the nic dose as I feel I need it. The patch? Not so much. Whatever they say. A patch doesnt let me hold it in my fingers and comfort me. A patch doesnt give me satisfying plumes. How many slammin' patch forums are there? LOL I can just see the threads. " Check out this cute carry case for my patches!" "ten people stopped me to ask about my new patch!" "new duck tape covers for your patch!" sigh. Patches suck. Aquatroy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bebop Posted September 11, 2013 Share Posted September 11, 2013 How many slammin' patch forums are there? LOL I can just see the threads. " Check out this cute carry case for my patches!" "ten people stopped me to ask about my new patch!" "new duck tape covers for your patch!" sigh. Patches suck. Thanks, I just lost my coffee in my lap! Firkin hilarious! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subnuclear Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 patch, gum. lozenges............none of it works. they are horrid and really didn't curb my desires at all... vaping ....it's all roses! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rixter Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 (edited) Yeah, but e-cigs don't stick to your skin as well as patches do, so there's that. Edited September 14, 2013 by Rixter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquatroy Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Stick and wait and hour or two for your nic....nope..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rixter Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 Aquatroy and Jeffb 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christie Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 I disagree! they work BETTER! as there are some of us that have the oral fixation ( not a word from any of you boyz!!!) And the patch can do nothing for that ! So its vape , or eat And I for one , have a delicate stomach ( reflux and whatnot ) and cannot just go willy nilly eating everything in sight . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aufin Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 All I know is, well, what I know. I know - 1. The patches for me didn't/don't work. 2. Nicorette gum is nasty. 3. E-cigs (a good one) are a no-brainer for someone trying to give up analogs/stinkies. I tried a few of the convenience store/truck stop cigarette look-alikes - they didn't work for me and I felt I wasted my $$. Just didn't do the same as a real cigarette. 4. Chantix - absolutely no way. If it takes 15 seconds in a 60 second commercial to tell the good it "may" do, and 45 seconds to list all the possible side effects, I have no desire to try it. Have been told if you use a CDL to earn a living and it comes out during the anual physical that you're on Chantix your CDL is history. If the DOT thinks Chantix is that bad, that just reinforces the reason for me not to be interested. I'm not too crazy about the dry mouth/throat/tongue I sometimes experience, but a taking sip of something wet or keeping a cup of ice handy, for me is a pretty simple remedy. As to which is better, the e-cigs, patches, etc, etc, the answer for me is a no-brainer. A friend loaned me one of his xtra eGo's for just 4 hours. The next day I went out and bought my own. On Apr 19, '13 I put a fresh opened pack of smokes aside for my e-smoke and haven't looked back. So, for me....... my vote is for vapn'. I have finally found a way to successfully leave a nasty 50 year habit behind. Problem is, now sometimes I feel like an evangalistic preacher if someone starts a conversation about my e-smokes. I have learned to control myself, though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havamal Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 I have to agree with the vaping being the better option. Patch - gave me a rash and that seemed to be the only effect it had Gum - I can't chew gum for long with out it dislocating my jaw from an old injury Vaping - Started vaping 8/17/13 with half a pack of analogs left... still have the half pack Gee, I wonder which option might be the better one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMEDICx90 Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 havamal... what was the injury that you cant chew gum without dislocating your jaw? not trying to be nosy... just really really curious as too what kind of injury would cause that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havamal Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 I got hit in the jaw with a pipe, which dislocated it. Ever since it makes a popping noise when I chew and if I chew a lot, like gum, it gets stiff and will occasionally pop out of joint again. Rather painful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMEDICx90 Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 oh damn! what in the hell were you getting hit with a pipe for? was it work related? cause i would have some cash from the employer... or a job for life with a six figure salary.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Havamal Posted September 17, 2013 Share Posted September 17, 2013 It was some punk when I was in high school, one of those guys that decided he was going to show his friends how tough he was by taking on the big guy... that plan did not work out too well for him,,, so he jumped me one day when I was walking out of a café and blindsided me with the pipe... that worked out even worse for him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raven1 Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 Having Epilepsy I can't do the patches, tried Chantax fail.... Vaping is the only thing that works for me. Very good post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christie Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Having Epilepsy I can't do the patches, tried Chantax fail.... Vaping is the only thing that works for me. Very good post. just curious, why cant you use patches if you are epileptic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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