Benefits of Vaping: Are There Any?

Vaping has emerged in recent years as an alternative to traditional cigarette smoking. While its long-term health impacts are still being researched, evidence so far suggests that vaping may offer certain advantages over smoking, particularly for current smokers looking to quit smoking. Below, we outline some of the major potential benefits supported by current research and provide an in-depth look at the scientific evidence behind them.

Reduction in Harm Relative to Smoking

Numerous scientific reviews, including an extensive 2018 evidence analysis by Public Health England, indicate that vaping poses substantially lower risks than combustible cigarettes. The absence of smoke and its toxic constituents in vaping is considered the primary reason for the reduced harm.

Specific findings from leading public health organizations and studies show that compared to smoking cigarettes, vaping:

• Exposes users to significantly lower levels of carcinogens and toxins

  • Testing shows greatly reduced presence of carbon monoxide, tar, tobacco-specific nitrosamines, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other dangerous compounds inhaled while vaping compared to inhaling tobacco smoke.

• Involves reduced respiratory, cardiovascular, and other disease risks

  • Evidence points to improved lung function in smokers who switch to vaping

  • Substantially lowered risk of lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and asthma development

  • Potentially lowered risk of heart disease and stroke

• Poses significantly fewer risks from passive vapour exposure compared to second-hand smoke

So while vaping is not completely risk-free, it does markedly reduce exposure to the deadly mix of 7,000+ chemicals produced by burning tobacco. Even under a worst case scenario, modeling studies estimate vaping to be at least 95% less harmful than smoking traditional cigarettes.

To underscore these points, major health groups including Public Health England, the Royal College of Physicians, and Health Canada have acknowledged in their policy statements that vaping is an significantly less hazardous option for smokers unable to quit through other means.

Effectiveness in Smoking Cessation

An increasing amount of evidence from randomised controlled trials and real-world population data suggests vaping can be an effective aid in helping smokers quit:

• A 2021 Cochrane review analysed 50+ studies representing over 12,000 participants. It found vaping nearly twice as effective for quitting smoking as traditional nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) methods like patches and gum.
• Its delivery of nicotine replaces the action of smoking while allowing gradual step-down of dosage.
• It provides both the nicotine hit as well as the habitual hand-to-mouth movement and inhalation ritual associated with smoking.

These advantages appear to better address both the psychological and physical aspects of smoking addiction compared to alternative cessation options. The 2020 US Surgeon General's report on smoking cessation acknowledged that e-cigarettes have been shown to be effective aids to promote smoking cessation.

Importantly, while there is a risk of dependence on vaping itself for some former smokers, research suggests many do ultimately quit vaping altogether after initially transitioning away from more dangerous combustible tobacco.

Public Health Benefits

Researchers from the University of Michigan and the Yale School of Public Health have simulated long-term public health outcomes associated with vaping. According to their 2018 research entitled "Potential deaths averted in USA by replacing cigarettes with e-cigarettes", their validated models consistently project substantial net population health gains over the coming decades if a proportion of adult smokers switch from tobacco cigarettes to vaping:

• Vaping is estimated to save 6.6 million life-years among the US adult population alone by 2066

  • More than 86,000 fewer premature deaths each year

• Findings hold even under pessimistic assumptions about long-term individual and second-hand vaping risks
• Significant health gains are achieved while accounting for potential youth and non-smoker uptake of vaping

This research, published in the peer-reviewed Tobacco Control journal, indicates the considerable potential benefits of vaping for current adult smokers looking for less harmful nicotine sources from a public health policy perspective.

Even by conservative estimates, tobacco harm reduction experts contend widespread substitution of vaping for cigarette use could yield substantial lifesaving gains. While uncertainties exist about uptake patterns, based on current evidence, policies embracing tobacco alternatives like vaping as lower-risk options appear likely to drive substantial public health benefits over coming decades.

Control Over Nicotine Intake

Unlike cigarettes that deliver a fixed dose of nicotine, e-cigarettes allow users to customize their nicotine levels:

• Options typically range from 0mg to 20mg/ml concentrations
• Allows self-titration (increasing or decreasing) of nicotine intake based on individual preference and cravings
• Permits gradual step-down of dosage for smokers aiming to wean off their addiction

This adjustable nicotine delivery empowers vaping as a more personalised and adaptive quitting aid compared to nicotine patches or gum. Users gain greater agency in incrementally managing their transition away from high-risk combustible tobacco.

Having control over nicotine intake has been cited in user testimonials as a motivating factor supporting long-term transition and eventual cessation.

Further Considerations Around Vaping Benefits

Realising the benefits around vaping and harm reduction relies on sustained scientific monitoring and reasonable policy measures:

Ongoing Research

While the case for vaping's harm reducing potential has strengthened considerably, monitoring is still required:

• Data remains limited on long-term individual health outcomes of former smokers who switch to vaping
• Second-hand exposure risks to bystanders requires continued evaluation
• Impacts on population dynamics of smoking uptake and cessation need tracking

Preventing Youth Uptake

Keeping vaping products out of the hands of non-smoking adolescents remains vital through age access restrictions and marketing standards. Limits must be placed such that vaping does not serve as a gateway towards smoking for youth.

Risk-Informed Regulation

Policy measures must balance realising vaping's potential benefits for adult smokers while preventing use among youth non-smokers through age verification and retail restrictions.

Quality and Safety Standards

Regulations on manufacturing standards, testing requirements and product labeling remain important to ensure high quality and uniformity in vaping devices on the market.

Considerations and Controversies

While the potential advantages over smoking show promise, it remains imperative to approach vaping with caution and skepticism:

• Long-term individual and population-level health impacts associated with sustained vaping are unclear
• Gateway effects leading youth non-smokers to nicotine addictions remain a concern needing further research
• Ongoing regulatory developments aim to enhance safety surveillance and address knowledge gaps

Overall, consulting healthcare professionals and closely evaluating new research is recommended for smokers considering switching to vaping products. While they likely pose lesser harms than continuing smoking, the full public health impacts of these alternative nicotine devices are still unfolding. Caution and skepticism around claims in the absence of evidence is still warranted at this stage.

In summary, vaping holds strong promise as a harm reduction approach but it is not without risks and uncertainties. Achieving net public health gains relies on reasoned regulations and continued research monitoring of this rapidly evolving landscape.