Tank e-cig users ‘better for quitting’

Tobacco smokers who also use ‘tank’ e-cigarettes daily are more likely to kick the habit altogether than those who puff on ‘cigalike’ models, a study has found.

Scientists at King’s College London found that, at the one-year follow-up, more than a quarter of daily tank users (28%) had quit smoking compared with 11% of daily cigalike users — fewer than the 13% who quit and who did not use an e-cigarette at all.

They said while cigalikes resemble tobacco cigarettes and are either disposable or use replaceable cartridges, tank models look quite different from cigarettes and have containers that can be refilled with ‘e-liquid’.

Their analysis of just under 600 people found that non-daily cigalike users were actually less likely to have quit compared with those not using e-cigarettes, with only 5% having quit.

They highlighted this as a cause for concern as many of the most prominent brands of cigalikes in the UK are now owned by the tobacco industry and another recent study found that cigalikes were the most prominent e-cigarettes at the point of sale in small shops.

Lead author Dr Sara Hitchman said: “Our research demonstrates the importance of distinguishing between different types of e-cigarettes and frequency of use when examining the association between e-cigarettes and quitting.

“At this point, we don’t know why people who use tank-type e-cigarettes daily are more likely to have quit.

“Research suggests tanks might deliver nicotine more effectively and perhaps be more satisfying to users, but there may also be other factors, including price and the ways tanks allow the user to adapt the product, such as the nicotine content and flavour of the liquid.”

Professor Ann McNeill, also of King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, said: “Our research indicates daily use of tank models that can be refilled with liquid may give smokers a better chance of quitting smoking.

“I would stress the associations found may not indicate causal connections. For example, there may be differences in the kind of smokers who choose to use e-cigarettes or different models.”

The study is published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research.