Dr. Rahmati, MD, assistant professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at New York Presbyterian/Columbia and one of the authors of the policy statement, does not recommend e-cigarettes to his patients. “There’s not enough data to support their effectiveness in smoking cessation,” he added, “and, equally important, we don’t know the potential long-term side effects.”
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February 2016Key policy recommendations from the statement support regulation of ENDS at the federal, state, and local levels, required registration with the FDA for ENDS manufacturers, warning labels on products and advertisements for ENDS, and prohibition of ENDS use where cigarette smoking is not allowed, as well as a ban on the marketing of ENDS to youth and of ENDS flavors that might appeal to children.
Additionally, new research out of the University of California San Diego says smokers who try e-cigarettes to help them quit may in fact be less likely to quit (Am J Public Health. 2015;105:1213-1219). Smokers in the study who had tried e-cigarettes were found to be half as likely to cut back on cigarette use and 59% less likely to quit. While the study’s author says more studies are needed, one possible reason for the findings is that smokers using e-cigarettes may be receiving an increase in nicotine over those not using e-cigarettes.