Results of Penn State Study Shows That E-Cigarettes Are “Less Addictive” Than Tobacco Cigarettes

A recently published study has given hope to those who are trying hard to quit smoking tobacco cigarettes as it shows that those who vape are less addicted to vaping than people who smoke cigarettes. Reported by PennState News, the study conducted by the Penn State College of Medicine, was led by Guodong Liu, an assistant professor of public health sciences and was funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Center for Tobacco Products. 

The study highlights the health benefits of electronic cigarettes and goes over the many common misconceptions on vaping that have been circulating the media. The most prominent of these is the theory used by many anti-vaping lobbyists who say that e-cigs are a gateway to future tobacco smoking addiction.

Guodong Liu and his team refute this claim, stating that their results show using e-cigarettes helps reduce the daily nicotine cravings experienced by smokers in users who vape over those who continue to smoke.

How Did They Do It?

Titled E-cigarettes less addictive than cigarettes, the study was conducted in order to measure both vaping and tobacco cigarette dependence. The data was gathered using the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study, which is conducted by the National Institutes of Health and the FDA. The PATH study took into account the daily use of vaporizing devices and tobacco cigarette smokers. 

The complete study surveyed 32,320 adult participants, where only 3,586 met the needed criteria for the data. Those who participated, only 5% were vapers exclusively and 95% were tobacco cigarette smokers. Among the users, 93% stated that they used to be regular tobacco smokers while 7% were occasional smokers.

The Results

• Compared to tobacco cigarette smokers, vapers would wait much longer before vaping in the morning.
• E-cigarette users stated that they considered themselves far less dependent on their e-cigs than how they previously were with tobacco cigarettes.
• E-cigarette users were far less overwhelmed by their cravings to vape in comparison to the cravings they experienced with tobacco cigarettes.
• E-cigarette users felt it was easier for them to refrain from vaping in public compared to when they used to smoke.

“No doubt about it, e-cigarettes are addictive, but not at the same level as traditional cigarettes.” Stated Liu whose team has plans to continue their research with several follow up studies. Of the 32,320 participants, over 80% submitted intermittent biomarker samples of blood and urine throughout the length of the study.

Once the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) makes the additional data available, Liu’s research team plans to conduct a follow-up study to determine the nicotine levels of participants in comparison to their claims of vaping versus smoking dependency and associated cravings.