A pilot program giving away free vape starter kits to smokers in the United Kingdom helped two in five smokers kick their nasty smoking habits. Apparently, giving free e-cigs to some smokers is enough to help them finally quit smoking.
The trial, which was funded by the Norfolk County Council, initially targeted smokers in Great Yarmouth. Participants in the pilot scheme were either referred by their GP, a health service, or self-referred. A total of 668 participants were referred between December 2019 and July 2021. For whatever reason, only 340 of those referred to the program redeemed their voucher for a free vape starter kit.
Free Vape Kits To Quit Smoking
The participants received a £25 voucher (equivalent to about A$44) that they could then redeem for an e-cig starter kit. They were also referred to a specialist stop-smoking service.
Of the participants that redeemed their voucher and received a free vaping kit, 42% had quit smoking within just one month. What’s particularly impressive about this feat is the fact that the patients had previously failed to quit smoking in prior attempts to do so.
This is just one of the many examples that we’ve seen of smokers quitting smoking with the help of nicotine vaping products. These are ordinary people that have struggled to quit smoking and with the help of vaping and a specialist stop-smoking service, these people managed to successfully quit smoking.
The pilot program was part of a study that was commissioned by the Norfolk County Council and led by the University of East Anglia. The study’s findings were published in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research.
Helping The Most Vulnerable Smokers
Professor Caitlin Notley from the University of East Anglia’s Norwich Medical School, the study’s lead researcher, made clear that the scheme was aimed at helping “vulnerable and disadvantaged smokers who had failed to quit smoking by other means”.
If you’re thinking about switching from smoke to vape, you may want to read this article on our website in which we discuss what it’s like to switch from smoking to vaping. This way, you will at least have some idea of what to expect.