Shite! I give up! Science on Vaping....again...

I am sick of this kind of "Medical science"  see this German Study. From the very first second of reading, I can just feel the bias. By the time I got to page 33/34, the top of my head nearly blew off! This is what is says: -

Efficacy of electronic cigarettes for sustained tobacco cessation

To date, there is not a single study available based on reliable methods (randomized controlled study) with a large number of participants and sufficiently long observation period to provide evidence of the efficacy of the electronic cigarette as cessation device. According to the surveys, over two thirds of respondents are using electronic cigarettes to reduce or quit smoking or to prevent relapse. More than 90 percent of consumers perceive the devices as helpful in smoking cessation only in the smallest of the surveys, no more than 20 out of 81 participants said this was so.Due to the way in which participants were recruited in the above three of the studies, such as in user forums, on websites where electronic cigarettes are sold, or at a user meeting, it cannot be excluded that disproportionately more enthusiastic users participated and hence that the overall satisfaction with the product may be overestimated. In an online survey with 1,347 participants from 33countries (mostly European)recruited through the websites of two popular e-cigarette vendors, 74 percent of participants reported not having smoked any conventional cigarettes for several weeks or months since they started using e-cigarettes, and 14 percent said they hadsubstantially reduced smoking

According to a survey with responses of 216 first-time buyers of e-cigarettes, abouttwo thirds of participants (66.8 percent) reduced cigarette consumption, almost half of them (48.8 percent) were temporarily smoke-free and 31 percent of users reported being completely smoke-free within six months after starting to usee-cigarettes. Most of these former smokers (56.7 percent) continue using electronic cigarettes; only about one third of them have stopped using nicotine-containing products.

However, it cannot be excluded that considerably more successful ex-smokers have completed the questionnaire than have e-cigarette consumers who continue smoking. The real success rate may therefore be significantly lower. The case study reports about three heavy smokers, who had already tried to quit several times and failed. They were smoke-free for at least six months after starting to use e-cigarettes. How ever, only one of them also quit using the e-cigarette after some time

In a small prospective cohort study,smokers with no intention to quit were supplied with electronic cigarettes for 24weeks. At the end of the study, 13 out of originally 40 participants had cut down smoking by 50 percent; nine percent had stopped smoking, with six of them continuing to be regular e-cigarette users However, as one third of participantsdropped out in the course of the study, the final evaluation included only the data of individuals. It cannot be excluded that the participants who dropped out were mainly those who were dissatisfied with the devices and continued smoking. In this case, smoking cessation success rate would be lower than assumed in the study.

According to a survey commissioned by the European Commission, at present the devices neither seem to be popular for smoking cessation nor do they show much efficacy. In Germany, only seven percent of smokers intending to quit say they are using electronic cigarettes as a smoking cessation aid. By contrast, 17 percent of smokers trying to quit are using pharma ceutical nicotine replacement products and  majority of them (66 percent) try to quit smoking without any aids and succeed indoing so. 75 percent of successful ex-smokers report having quit without any aids;six percent managed to quit with the aid of nicotine replacement products and none of the ex-smokers report having become smoke-free with the aid of electronic cigarettes.

 

Since the survey was based ona random sample, it does not necessarily reflect the ratio of smokers, former smokers and non-smokers  in the population. In addition, the sample may have been too small to adequately capture the small proportion of e-cigarette consumers in the population. Both factors may distort the results obtained.

To sum up, although available studies suggest that electronic cigarettes can reduce the urge to smoke and withdrawal symptoms, and even though some smokers switch – at least temporarily – from conventional cigarettes to the electronic devices, only a very small proportion of smokers seems to achieve sustained cessation of nicotine consumption in this way. Based on current data, the long-term duration of a switch or cessation is not clear, because currently available studies cover only a maximum time period of six months. However, relapse after smoking cessation is not uncommon after much longer time periods. Although the desire to smoke does subside over time after smoking cessation, one third of ex-smokers still feels a certain need to smoke even after one year

.

Generally, it is a matter of concern that most smokers trying to quit with the aid of electronic cigarettes may quit smoking but will still continue consuming nicotine. This is a big problem not only because of the technical product flaws described in Chapter2, but also because the long-term health risks involved are unclear. Moreover, the goal of tobacco cessation, from an addiction therapy perspective, is to withdraw completely from the addiction. This is not achieved when smokers switch to or continue smoking electronic cigarettes with nicotine. Instead, nicotine dependence and addictive behaviour are maintained.

Conclusion

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Electronic cigarettes can reduce craving and withdrawal symptoms.

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Even e-cigarettes containing no nicotine reduce the desire to smoke and

withdrawal symptoms.

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Some smokers cut down smoking or quit smoking as a result of using

e-cigarettes.

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The efficacy of e-cigarettes as an aid for sustained smoking cessation has not

yet been proven.

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We urgently need to know more on the efficacy of electronic cigarettes as

a cessation device.