FEATURES
PHE REPORT SHOWS VAPING PLATEAU
Experts warn that smokers are being put off by ‘ unfounded safety fears ’
Words : Gordon Stribling
“
What is concerning is that smokers , particularly those from disadvantaged groups , incorrectly and increasingly believe that vaping is as harmful as smoking .
“
Public Health England ’ s ( PHE ) seventh e-cigarette report has been met with resounding industry support , but it is not all good news .
The huge positive is that vaping continues to be proven the most effective stop smoking aid around today . However , there is nothing positive about the fact that vaping levels have plateaued and misperceptions about the relative risks of vaping and smoking are a key reason for this .
Professor John Newton , Director of Health Improvement at PHE , said : “ The best thing that a smoker can do is to stop smoking completely and the evidence shows that vaping is one of the most effective quit aids available , helping around 50,000 smokers quit a year .
“ Thousands more could have quit except for unfounded safety fears about e-cigarettes . The evidence has been clear for some time that , while not riskfree , vaping is far less harmful than smoking .”
In 2020 , 38 percent of smokers believed that vaping was as harmful as smoking while 15 percent believed it was more so . This is despite the UK government and health charities continuing to assert that vaping is at least 95 percent less harmful than smoking .
Most experts on either side of the Atlantic
52 l VM33