Young adults more likely to switch from smoking to vaping when aware of reduced harm, but misinformation deters change

Press release issued: 14 February 2025

Young adults are more likely to give up smoking and switch to vaping if they understand the reduced harm of vaping, according to a new study involving University of Bristol researchers. However, many inaccurately believe that vaping is as bad for you or worse than smoking.

The study, published in Nicotine and Alcohol Research and led by a team at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, found that, among young adults who smoked at age 23/24 years perceived vaping as less harmful than smoking was associated with switching from smoking to vaping six years later.

Lead author of the study, Dr Katherine East, Associate Professor in Public Health at Brighton and Sussex Medical School, said: “There is a lot of misinformation circulating that vaping is as bad as smoking or even worse. While vaping is not without risks, the evidence is clear that vaping is much less harmful than smoking and can help people successfully quit smoking.

“Unfortunately, misperceptions of vaping harms continue to increase, and we have found in our study that this could deter young adults who smoke from switching to vaping (a less harmful behaviour). In England in 2024, 85% of adults who smoked inaccurately perceived that vaping is equally or more harmful than smoking or did not know the relative harms, an increase from 59% ten years before.”

Dr Jasmine Khouja, the study’s Senior Author and Senior Research Associate, Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Programme at the University of Bristol, said: “The study highlights the need for interventions to improve the pervasive misperceptions about vaping that are currently observed among people who smoke.

“In recent years, we've seen a growing number of people believe that vaping is equally or more harmful than smoking. Our study shows that these beliefs could be stopping some people from switching from smoking to vaping as a less harmful alternative. It is important for people who smoke to understand that although vapes are not risk-free, switching to vaping could dramatically reduce their risk of developing smoking-related diseases."

Professor Ann McNeill, the study’s co-author and Professor of Tobacco Addiction at King’s College London, added: “Smoking is uniquely deadly and will kill one in two regular sustained smokers, yet most people who smoke do not know vaping is less harmful and can help them to stop smoking completely. Our study shows the importance of addressing vaping misperceptions among people who smoke.”

Data used in the study is from Bristol’s Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), a prospective cohort study. The analyses were funded by the Society for the Study of Addiction (SSA).

Paper

‘Perceived harm of vaping relative to smoking and associations with subsequent smoking and vaping behaviours among young adults: evidence from a UK cohort study’ by K East et al. in Nicotine and Alcohol Research [open access]

Further information

About Children of the 90s
Based at the University of Bristol, Children of the 90s, also known as the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), is a long-term health research project that enrolled more than 14,000 pregnant women in 1991 and 1992. It has been following the health and development of the parents, their children and now their grandchildren in detail ever since. It receives core funding from the Medical Research Council, the Wellcome Trust and the University of Bristol.

The study’s biobank, which is managed by the Bioresource Laboratory at the University of Bristol, was named Biobank of the Year in November 2018. It has collected more than two million samples which include DNA, blood, urine, saliva, placentas, hair, nails and milk teeth which are made available to researchers for health and social science study.

The study is still recruiting - If you were born (or expected to be born) in Bristol or Weston-Super-Mare between April 1991 and December 1992 you should be able to take part. It doesn’t matter if you’ve not been involved or have moved away from the area.
We are now recruiting the next generation of Children of the 90s. So if you think you are a Child of the 90s, or the partner of a Child of the 90s, and you have or are about to have your own children (including step children) then as a family you will be able to take part.
To join telephone 0117 331 0010 or email info@childrenofthe90s.ac.uk

Find out more at: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/alspac/