E-Cigarettes May Aid Quit-Smoking Efforts

E-cigarettes may help people quit smoking, a small study suggests. The study included 657 adults who wanted to quit smoking. They were randomly divided into 3 groups. One group received nicotine patches. The others received either real or fake (placebo) e-cigarettes. E-cigarettes produce a vapor that contains nicotine. They do not burn tobacco. The placebo e-cigarettes did not contain nicotine. After 6 months, 7.3% of those using the e-cigarettes had quit smoking. That was slightly better than the 5.8% who quit with the patch, an established quit-smoking aid. About 4.1% quit with only the fake e-cigarettes. Researchers said more study is needed to establish the benefits and long-term harms of e-cigarettes. The journal Lancet published the study. CNN.com and HealthDay News wrote about it.