When researchers examine the effects of vejpning, nicotine pouches or other smokeless nicotine products, it is almost always the users themselves who are scrutinised. A new international study has taken a different approach, looking instead at the impact on family members, partners and friends of people who have quit smoking.
The responses show that the changes are felt far beyond the individual smoker.
What is the impact on the family when someone quits smoking with the help of a vejp, nicotine pouches or heated tobacco? This is the question behind the report ”The Household Case for Innovation”, commissioned by the liberal think-tank ”We Are Innovation” and produced by Ipsos.
More than 4 000 people in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France and Japan took part in the survey. What they had in common was that they were close to someone who had smoked cigarettes in the past but had later quit with the help of so-called innovative nicotine products. Instead of asking the former smokers themselves, the survey chose to focus on the people around them.
Less cigarette smoke in everyday life
The most striking result concerns passive smoking.
Almost two-thirds of participants, 62 per cent, said they were exposed to less cigarette smoke after their loved one quit smoking. At the same time, more than half said they noticed positive changes in social activities, time spent together and the ability to do things as family or friends. The effects were greatest among those who lived with the former smoker.
Quitting smoking also reduces exposure to cigarette smoke in the neighbourhood. However, the authors of the report argue that the family and household perspective is often missing from the debate on smoking cessation and harm reduction.
”The study shows that the use of innovative nicotine products in smoking cessation not only had positive effects for the individual, but also for entire households and social networks,” the authors write.
Traditionally, research has focussed mainly on the smoker: the risk of getting sick, the possibility of quitting, and which aids work best. Far fewer studies have tried to measure how the change affects people around them.
Younger people saw the biggest changes
The survey also shows that the positive effects were felt most strongly by younger adults aged between 18 and 34. According to the report, this may be due to the fact that younger people are more often in life situations where family formation, young children and joint activities play a greater role in everyday life.
The authors do not draw any far-reaching conclusions about the causes, but say that the results suggest that the effects of smoking cessation may be particularly noticeable in households where people live closely together and share much of their daily lives.
”Friends and family members reported significantly more positive changes when their loved ones used innovative nicotine products to quit smoking,” the report notes.
Relatives believe that the products played a major role
Participants were also asked how important they thought the products had been in helping their loved ones quit smoking.
Between 66 and 78 per cent said they believed the person was unlikely to quit without the help of the products. Among those who had seen a loved one use heated tobacco to quit smoking, 89% described the product as helpful. The corresponding figures were 87% for nicotine pouches and 84% for vejp.
The survey also found that support for adults' access to such products was highest in countries where most participants said they had seen them help someone quit smoking. The authors of the report suggest that personal experience seems to play a major role in how people view harm reduction.
”There is overwhelming support for the right of adult smokers to access innovative nicotine products among people who have seen someone quit smoking with their help,” the authors write.
An unusual perspective in the debate
In Sweden, smoking has fallen sharply in recent decades. At the same time, the use of snus, nicotine pouches and to some extent vejp has increased. Nevertheless, smokeless nicotine products are met with scepticism in the public debate.
“The debate is often about the risks of the products themselves or their potential role in smoking cessation. Far less often discussed are the effects that quitting smoking can have on those around you. This may seem remarkable, as passive smoking has long been a central part of the arguments in favour of banning smoking in public places.” say the authors in their analysis.
Recently, the link between smokeless nicotine products and smoking cessation has been questioned by some authorities and advocacy organisations in Sweden. There are certainly a large number of studies showing that e-cigarettes can help smokers quit. For nicotine pouches and snus, the research is more limited.
However, for carers of people who have successfully quit smoking, the issue seems less complicated.
“We find that people who have seen a friend or family member quit smoking with the help of innovative nicotine products express strong confidence in their effectiveness,” the report authors write.
Sources in this article:
The Household Case for Innovation: A Five-Country Survey on Smoking cessation, and Quality of Life
Vejpkollen notes:
The report was commissioned by ”We Are Innovation”, a free-market think tank that has long argued in favour of harm reduction and a more positive approach to alternative nicotine products. The organisation has previously criticised restrictions on vejpning and other smokeless nicotine products. In addition, the results are based on participants' own experiences and judgements, not on medical measurements or clinical data.
The survey is therefore not independent academic research but an opinion poll conducted by Ipsos on behalf of an organisation with a clear position on the issue. Similar surveys are also regularly published and launched by other advocacy organisations such as Non Smoking Generation and the Heart-Lung Foundation.
