Free distribution of e-cigarettes to smokers!
An initial study has just been published in the journal Addiction on the Swap to Stop program launched in England in 2023. Researchers are delighted: 125,000 people have received a free vaping kit with support to help them quit smoking. The authors of the study are encouraging the UK government to continue the program and are calling on other countries to follow suit.
Dr. Vera Buss: " It's great news that around 125,000 people in England have tried to quit smoking using e-cigarettes since the smoking cessation support program was introduced. E-cigarette users are around 50% more likely to successfully quit smoking than those who use nicotine replacement therapies, and quitting smoking significantly reduces the risk of many serious diseases."
On the ground, North Yorkshire County Council intends to continue the program and plans to invest £477 million in it. This is because the free distribution of e-cigarettes has been successful: of the 487 people who have already benefited from the aid, 363 have managed to quit smoking for at least four weeks, i.e., 75%. After one year, 33% remained non-smokers.
To understand how the Swap To Stop program works, take a look at this registration form from the Borough of Hounslow in London: simple registration, vaping kit + two weeks' worth of e-liquids sent by mail free of charge, comprehensive information, and personalized support.
Let's be positive, the tide is turning in France too!
Article 23, which sought to equate vaping with smoking, has been rejected. ANSES has just released a report confirming the dramatic reduction in risks associated with vaping compared to tobacco. Scientific publications and expert opinions are increasingly recognizing the effectiveness of vaping in smoking cessation, thereby disqualifying the theory of vaping as a gateway to tobacco.
The challenge today is to put vaping in good hands for the greater good.
Vaping is a tool designed to help smokers quit smoking and avoid relapse. Equipment, e-liquids, nicotine management, and best practices: vaping requires expert and specialized support, as provided by vaping professionals for nearly 15 years. They have already helped 3 million French people quit smoking.
We must no longer allow the tobacco industry and unspecialized parallel markets to spoil and misrepresent our product. Because of them, vaping is caricatured and distorted, and unfairly attacked, even though it is an undeniable solution in the fight against smoking, which, let us remember, causes 68,000 premature deaths each year. Tobacco remains the leading cause of preventable deaths in France.
Vaping doesn't kill, it saves lives. In England, the government is distributing free e-cigarettes to smokers!
Stronger together
FIVAPE has recorded record membership levels over the past six months. It will hold its general meeting of members on Monday, March 30, in Paris, with a specific goal: to bring together committed players in the sector behind values and constructive, pragmatic proposals to regulate vaping, protect it from imposters, and safeguard the independent specialized industry, in the interest of public health.
The time for recognition has come. FIVAPE is constantly working behind the scenes, particularly with the media. On Tuesday morning, for example, I was on Radio Classique to promote the expertise of our industry. We must no longer simply "defend" ourselves; we must present our vision, based on our experience, expertise, and success in the fight against smoking. And we need the support of those who also want to combat this scourge, rather than blindly fighting vaping on principle and baselessly denigrating an industry that is independent of the tobacco industry and fights daily to defeat smoking.
Faced with persistent threats, particularly in Europe, our mission is to convince our national authorities that France needs to make its voice heard in an innovative, unique, and responsible manner.
Jean MOIROUD
President of FIVAPE
