Giving Compass' Take:

• A study in New Zealand revealed that increasing access to e-cigarettes and vaping increased health gains as well as cost savings. 

• What role can donors play in helping decrease cigarette use, and increase health gains?

• Read about how some experts believe that vaping is stalling progress on reducing teen smoking. 

The research modeled what would happen if the number of people in New Zealand who vape increased due to greater access to nicotine-containing e-cigarettes compared to current patterns of use. Researchers say the results are applicable to Australia.

The study, which appears in Epidemiology, finds that the most likely outcome is a health benefit equivalent to adding an extra 19 healthy days to the life of each living New Zealander, due to the health those who quit smoking due to taking up vaping gained.

Due to uncertainty about the impact of long-term e-cigarette use, the average gains per person ranged from 2-37 healthy days—but it was clear that the overall health impact was positive under realistic assumptions.

The UK and US have relatively liberal regulations over the sale of these products, while Australia, Thailand, and Singapore have various bans. The government has recently relaxed restrictions in New Zealand, allowing adults to access nicotine vaping products without a prescription.

The study’s health gains were similar to those from well-established public health interventions, such as a 10 percent annual tobacco tax increase for 15 years, or a national colorectal cancer screening program.

“Policymaking regarding e-cigarettes is challenging,” Blakely says. “Nevertheless, our study points to cautious liberalization of access to e-cigarettes as the best way forward. That policy implementation should not be in isolation but accompanied by other policies that will make health gain more likely.”

“Moreover, strengthened policy on tobacco cigarettes, such as reducing the number of retail outlets, could work in tandem with greater access to nicotine vaping products to achieve maximal health gains.”

The University of Otago’s Burden of Disease Epidemiology, Equity and Cost-Effectiveness Program, which Blakely codirects, led the research in collaboration with the Universities of Queensland and Melbourne. Funding came from the Health Research Council of New Zealand.

Read the full article about access to e-cigarettes at Futurity.