Can you get E Cigarette Prescriptions on the NHS?

 If you have ever thought about wanting to quit smoking, you certainly won’t be alone. Nearly 7 in 10 of all smokers say that they want to stop, and most think about it on a daily basis.

We all know that quitting smoking is one of the best things that you can do for your health – nearly a third of all deaths come from smoking or second hand smoke.

That’s a scary statistic!

It’s no wonder that more and more people are turning to e-cigarettes in order to try and kick the habit. All recent studies show that vaping is safer than smoking – but that is the hot topic at the moment. How much safer is vaping than smoking?

Are E Cigarettes safe?

We are all familiar with the side effects of smoking. Cigarettes affect nearly every single organ in your body and contain over 7,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic.

Not only are they dangerous, but they also affect your sense of taste and smell, as well as burning a hole in your pocket and budget!

Cigarette usage is addictive though, and like other addictive substances breaking free of the routine and addiction can be incredibly challenging…

Many smokers are turning to vaping and e-cigarettes in order to try and break this habit as they provide a nicotine hit without the damaging effects of smoke and tar.

For those who are smokers, this is a reason that e-cigarettes are gaining popularity each year.

Are e cigs healthier than regular cigarettes?

There is a common misconception that e-cigarettes are equally as harmful or more harmful than real cigarettes, so we have done some research and checked out 2 of the major studies into this question. Firstly, Cancer Research. Overall, their studies showed that e-cigarettes are far less harmful than smoking as they don’t contain tobaccos and there is ‘no smoke, tar or carbon monoxide, and studies looking at key toxicants have generally found much lower levels than in cigarettes.

So far so good, right?

The study then goes on to suggest that, as e-cigarettes are a relatively new product, their long-term effects aren’t fully known. Taking into account their established safety and effectiveness, Cancer Research UK shares the same views as many other health organisations that e-cigarettes are significantly less harmful than smoking.

Are e cigarettes safer than smoking?

So, the consensus so far is YES – e-cigarettes are a lot safer than smoking.

The evidence so far certainly shows that e-cigarettes are safer than smoking, and whilst we don’t know the full extent of vaping effects on the body – not putting tar and cigarette smoke into your body is a step in the right direction. All recent studies show that:

• People who swap to regulated e cigarettes and products reduce the number of toxins in their body
• Whilst nicotine is addictive, it does not cause cancer 
• There is no evidence that vape clouds harm innocent bystanders 
• If you swap to e cigarettes for a month, your blood vessels will become healthier than if you were smoking
• Tobacco is the biggest cause of preventable deaths in the UK

Is vaping safe – NHS views and studies

There have been many scary stories about e-cigarettes in the media lately, from health-related issues such as popcorn lung to fatal accidents from faulty equipment. After looking at the NHS and their view on e-cigarettes, they seem to be in agreement with other studies – they are an amazing tool to help you stop smoking. They found that in 2019, when combined with face-to-face support, people who used vaping and e-cigarettes to quit smoking were twice as likely to succeed as those who used other nicotine replacement products.

Whilst they also agree that vaping is not completely risk free, compared to what ingredients make up cigarettes, vaping carries a fraction of the risks. E cigarettes and e liquid are tightly regulated for both safety and quality, and you don’t get carbon monoxide or tar from vaping.

In fact, the Department of Health and Social Care have announced that e cigarettes could be prescribed on the NHS relatively soon to be in line with the government’s plan to become a smoke-free nation by 2030. This would make the UK the first country to be able to prescribe e cigarettes as a stop smoking aid, and this could help reduce the burden on the NHS by reducing the need for a lot of emergency treatment, needed for smokers. This is a landmark statement made by both the government and NHS, and definitely helps to support the idea that vaping is safer than smoking.

Will e cigarettes help you to quit smoking?

According to the government website, there are a whopping 2.7 million adult vapers in England – making e cigarettes officially the most popular method used by smokers to try and quit. Vaping is responsible for high success rates, with 68% of people moving onto e cigarettes being successful and not going back to smoking again. A Major UK study by the National Institute for Health Research studied 886 participants and split them into an e-cigarette group and a nicotine replacement group, to see the results after 1 year of trying to quit smoking. What they found was that 18% of e cigarette users quit smoking for the whole year compared to 9.9% of nicotine replacement users. They also found that over the year, 80% of the e cigarette users stuck to their product for 52 weeks, compared to 9% of the nicotine replacement users.

Whilst this might seem like a lot of statistics, the numbers really do speak for themselves and it cannot be denied that by vaping and using e cigarettes, you are more likely to quit smoking and never go back.

That, and the fact that you can get much nicer flavours in e cigarettes, it’s a no-brainer!

So, what are you waiting for? Take a look now at our fantastic starter kits to take the first step to a smoke free you.