E-cigarettes discourage young people taking up smoking

The study said that there was nothing to suggest in the research that youngsters see vaping as a 

stepping stone to smoking. 

E-cigarettesll are playing a key role in reducing the likelihood of young people 

smoking, in many cases acting as a 'roadblock' to combustible tobacco, a new study has 

claimed. 

In detailed qualitative interviews with young people aged 16 to 25 in the majority of 

participants viewed e-cigarettes as having reduced - not increased - the possibility of both 

themselves and other people smoking. 

"There was very little indication amongst the young people interviewed that e-cigarettes were 

resulting in an increased likelihood of young people smoking," said Neil McKeganey from 

Centre for Substance Use Research16 in Scotland, who led the research. 

"In fact the majority we interviewed, including those who were vaping, perceived smoking in 

very negative terms and saw vaping as being entirely different to smoking,- McKeganey said. 

Impoftantly, the overwhelming majority of participants - who collectively represented current 

and former smokers, non-smokers, and e-cigarette users - viewed tobacco as 'extremely 

harmful' and believed e-cigarettes offered smokers an alternative. 

Despite the acute awareness of the harms of tobacco however, it was evident that some young 

people remain confused about e-cigarettes and whether or not they are similarly harmful. 

Some mentioned they had seen media coverage reporting that e-cigarettes "are just as bad" as 

smoking and, as a result, they were uncertain and reluctant about using the devices. 

"It's more concerning, particularly for the young people who currently smoke, that inaccurate 

perceptions of e-cigarettes could result in the persistent use of combustible tobacco irrespective 

of the fact that Public Health England has concluded vaping is 95 per cent less harmful than 

conventional cigarettes," said McKeganey. 

"What was apparent is that this persistent view, expressed by some young people, that vaping 

was just as harmful as smoking, was resulting in some young people continuing to smoke when 

they might otherwise have quit," he said. 

There was nothing to suggest in the research that youngsters see vaping as a stepping stone to 

smoking - quite the opposite, he added. 




Response: This
article talks about a recent study on the effectiveness of e-smoking on
prevention of young people who would otherwise smoke. The study showed that
young people who use e-cigarettes are more opposed to regular smoking and think
that it is harmful. If this study is correct, it could be really helpful in
preventing smoking throughout the world. This may seem like a current issue
that isnt necessarily as big as many others but so many people are affected by
smoking and the harmful diseases it causes so it would be a great development
if e-cigarettes could be an alternative to that. This article is pretty biased
against smoking and towards the British health system but the idea seems
interesting. I do think that this is an issue that may be able to be fixed for
the most part with this new study and development.
citation: "E-cigarettes Discourage Young People Taking up Smoking - The Economic Times." The Economic Times. The Economic Times, 20 June 2016. Web. 20 June 2016. <http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/e-cigarettes-discourage-young-people-taking-up-smoking/articleshow/52827073.cms>.