Top Takeaways:

• Flavored vapes significantly outperform traditional nicotine therapies.
• Study highlights effectiveness among disadvantaged populations.
• Concerns remain about long-term health risks and regulatory limits.

A new peer-reviewed study from Australia has found that flavored vaping products are significantly more effective than traditional nicotine replacement therapies in helping smokers quit, a finding that could reshape ongoing debates over vaping’s role in public health policy.

Published Monday in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the six-month clinical trial was led by Ryan Courtney, associate professor at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales.

Researchers found that 28.9% of smokers using flavored e-cigarettes remained smoke-free at six months, compared to just 9.8% of those using nicotine gum or lozenges.

“Vaporized nicotine products were more effective than nicotine replacement therapy for smoking cessation,” the study’s authors wrote, adding that the difference was observed even with only minimal behavioral support via text messages.

The randomized trial involved more than 1,000 Australian adults who were receiving government benefits and expressed interest in quitting smoking. Participants were split into two groups: one received an eight-week supply of e-liquid in tobacco, menthol, or fruit flavors; the other received a similar duration of either nicotine gum or lozenges. Both groups also received automated behavioral support by SMS over five weeks.

The study is notable not only for its findings but for its focus on individuals experiencing social disadvantage—populations that often have higher smoking rates and fewer resources to access cessation support.

“In the current trial among people experiencing social disadvantage, vaporized nicotine products with flavor choice had greater effectiveness compared with nicotine replacement therapy gum or lozenge,” the researchers concluded.

Still, the authors cautioned that more research is needed to evaluate whether e-cigarette users remain abstinent long-term, and whether vaping poses other health risks.

“Although current evidence suggests switching completely from cigarette smoking to [vaping] reduces health risks, the long-term health effects of vaping are largely unknown and data are emerging that demonstrate vaping can impact cardiovascular health,” the study noted.