24/05/2022
🚭 In 2019 the government announced its ambition to make England smoke-free by 2030.
➡️ Ni****ne alternatives, such as e-ci******es, have an important role to play in aiding smoking cessation. With that in focus, Demos has released its latest report, Myths and Misinformation: Mapping the barriers to smoking cessation and the uptake of ni****ne alternatives, which has looked at the prevalence of to***co harm misperceptions amongst the UK public.
➡️ The report has uncovered a huge level of misunderstanding around the harms posed by to***co, with 93% of Brits overestimating the health risk of ni****ne, one of the main chemicals in to***co. The over 60s and those from the lowest socio economic groups (C2DE) are the most likely to be misinformed, illustrating the scale of the task at hand for the government.
➡️ Our research has also revealed the scale of misunderstanding around va**ng, with 90% of Brits’ responses ‘broadly incorrect’ about its harm compared to to***co ci******es; this despite public health evidence asserting that va**ng is unlikely to exceed 5% of the harm that comes from smoking ci******es.
Demos is Britain’s leading cross-party think-tank. We produce original research, publish innovative thinkers and host thought-provoking events.