WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the American Vaping Association, a leading advocate for the benefits of vapor products such as electronic cigarettes, reacted to the release of a new study published in the American Heart Association’s Circulation Journal. The meta-analysis of six previously published studies found an 18% smoking cessation rate (224/1,242) after 6 months for smokers who used vapor products containing nicotine. This compares to an average cessation rate of 7% at six months for FDA-approved nicotine replacement therapy products like the nicotine gum, patch, and lozenge.

Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association, issued the following statement:

“This study demonstrates exactly why e-cigarettes and vapor products have become so popular among smokers looking to quit. For smokers looking to quit, vaping is undeniably a viable option. Additionally, research continues to show that vaping is especially helpful for smokers who have tried and failed to quit multiple times with government-approved methods like the nicotine patch, gum, and lozenge. Genuine public health advocates should cheer this new study.

“We remain very concerned that the public health benefits of vaping could be squashed by improper and excessive FDA regulation. If approved, the FDA’s proposed deeming regulation would act as a de facto ban on over 99% of e-cigarette products currently available on the market. Dramatically decreasing product variety will hinder, not help, the FDA’s goal of reducing tobacco-related disease and death.

“We continue to call on House and Senate leadership to introduce a bill in 2015 that would substantially alter the FDA’s authority over e-cigarette products already on the market.”

You can learn more about AVA and vaping by visiting the AVA website.

For more information on how the proposed FDA regulations would crush the e-cigarette market, please visit these sources (1, 2, 3, 4).