E-cigarettes lead to relapse among ex-smokers: Study

When they first hit the market in 2004, e-cigarettes were touted as a viable alternative for people struggling to quit smoking. 

Sixteen years later, the rate of success among smokers who have quit smoking in Kenya remains suppressed at below 10 per cent.

In most cases, smokers often find themselves relapsing to their old habits. Strikingly, one of the reasons behind this relapse is the use of e-cigarettes as an alternative to combustible cigarettes. This is according to a new scientific study that shows the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems is associated with significant increases in relapses to cigarette smoking among recent former smokers and longer term former cigarette smokers.

“A person who quit smoking one year ago may find themselves smoking cigarettes again if they take on e-cigarettes. The risk is higher among those who use these items or other tobacco products,” said Dr Wilson Compton who led the study.

TOXIC SUBSTANCES

Although this study, which examined tobacco and health data over the five-year period to 2018, was conducted in the US, its findings have possible ramifications for Kenya. This is because going by the findings, the use of e-cigarettes in Kenya may further maintain the status quo of one-third of smokers who have tried unsuccessfully to quit smoking, and exacerbate the seven per cent success rate of people who have quit smoking.

“There is also the elevated health risk that results from both e-cigarettes and combustible tobacco use. During treatment, the use of all electronic nicotine delivery systems ought to be discouraged for effective patient recovery,” said Dr Compton. This study was conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, US and published in the journal JAMA Network Open.

An e-cigarette is made up of a battery operated device that emits vaporised nicotine or non-nicotine solutions which users inhale. The device is designed to replicate the sensation of smoking an actual cigarette without producing the smoke. In most cases, the content of nicotine in e-cigarettes varies from zero to extra high which is measured between 24mg to 36mg per millilitre.

In a report by the World Health Organization (WHO) released in March, e-cigarettes were found to be harmful to both users and bystanders.

“Electronic nicotine delivery systems pose risks to users and non-users. With bystanders, the aerosols typically contain toxic substances, including glycol which is used to make antifreeze,” the WHO said.

Over the years, Kenya has struggled with a high population figure addicted to smoking. In 2014, for example, Kenya had the highest recorded smoking prevalence in Sub-Saharan Africa, with an estimated 2.5 million adults using tobacco products.

Between 2012 and 2016, the number of cigarette and cigar sticks consumed in Kenya increased from 6.7 billion to 11.3 billion. Similarly, smoking in Kenya is the leading cause of lung cancer. Seventy per cent of all lung cancers are linked to smoking, while general tobacco use contributes to as many as 31,000 annual deaths.