Nurse hails hospital quit scheme after vape switch

Paul Brittain said he was feeling healthier since switching from smoking cigarettes to vaping

A hospital worker has said he feels "tons better and healthier" after ditching cigarettes in favour of vaping, as figures showed one in 10 adults in the UK were now using e-cigarettes.

Paul Brittain, 53, a senior research nurse at York Hospital, said he had noticed health improvements by taking part in a hospital project called Swap and Stop for two years.

He spoke as a survey from Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) found 11% of respondents currently vaped, equivalent to 5.6 million adults in the UK.

The government said vaping could be an "effective tool" to stop smoking, but warned non-smokers "should never vape".

Mr Brittain said: "I started smoking at about 17 but became a grandad at 50, so I wanted to give quitting another try and so far, it has worked this time.

"For the first couple of weeks, I was very pleasantly surprised as it was the nicotine that you’re addicted to, not the craving of the cigarette, and I’ve been slowly reducing my nicotine down.

"I feel tons better and healthier within myself, as for the last 10-15 years, I had concurrent chest infections of bronchitis, and colds, but for the last two years, I’ve had no issues with this."

Smoking is estimated to be responsible for nearly one fifth (64,500) of all new cancer cases a year and causes 27% of all cancer deaths in the UK, according to Ash.

The latest figures from Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) show 5.6 million adults in the UK now vape

While vaping is less dangerous than smoking cigarettes, the vapour that is inhaled contains chemicals, including the addictive substance nicotine.

But Mr Brittain said he was starting to think of himself as more of a "non-smoker" and he was working on further reducing his nicotine intake.

He said: "In terms of trying to stop before, it has always been the negative language around wanting to quit.

"You were sort of doomed to fail before you started, because it was hard, you were going to get cravings, it would be horrible and you were just not going to succeed.

"This time I felt the language was all changed, so I felt this is more about preparing you to change to healthier habits and options, so I was doing everything I would do with a cigarette, but without the added toxicity that comes with smoking."

Humber & North Yorkshire Health & Care Partnership's Swap and Stop campaign aims to encourage smokers to switch to a safer alternative, such as vaping, patches or gum.

Research conducted by Ash and based on data collected by YouGov estimates 53% of vapers - or three million people - are former smokers.

Meanwhile, it said 39% of vapers are still smoking and 8% have never smoked.

Last month, the Labour government revived plans to introduce the Tobacco and Vapes Bill that could progressively increase the age at which people can buy tobacco, preventing anyone born after January 1 2009 being legally able to do so.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "While vaping can be an effective tool to stop smoking, the health advice is clear: children and adults that do not smoke should never vape.

"The upcoming Tobacco and Vapes Bill will protect future generations from the harms of tobacco and nicotine, saving thousands of lives and easing pressures on the NHS.

"By building a healthier society, we will help to build a healthy economy."

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