Changes in Cigarette Smoking and Vaping in Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in the UK: Findings from Baseline and 12-Month Follow up of HEBECO Study

Abstract

This study investigated UK adults’ changes in cigarette smoking and vaping during the COVID-19 pandemic and factors associated with any changes. Data were from an online longitudinal study. A self-selected sample (n = 332) of 228 smokers and 155 vapers (51 participants were both smokers and vapers) completed 5 surveys between April 2020 and June 2021. Participants self-reported data on sociodemographics, COVID-19-related, and smoking/vaping characteristics. During the 12 months of observations, among smokers, 45% self-reported a quit attempt (27.5% due to COVID-19-related reasons) since the onset of COVID-19 pandemic and the quit rate was 17.5%. At 12 months, 35.1% of continuing smokers (n = 174) reported smoking less and 37.9% the same, while 27.0% reported an increase in the number of cigarettes smoked/day. Among vapers, 25.0% self-reported a quit attempt (16.1% due to COVID-19-related reasons) and the quit rate was 18.1%. At 12 months, 47.7% of continuing vapers (n = 109) reported no change in the frequency of vaping/hour, while a similar proportion reported vaping less (27.5%) and more (24.8%). Motivation to quit smoking and being younger were associated with making a smoking quit attempt and smoking cessation. Being a cigarette smoker was associated with vaping cessation. Among a self-selected sample, COVID-19 stimulated more interest in reducing or quitting cigarette smoking than vaping.

Short and Long-Term Impact of COVID-19 Infection on Previous Respiratory Diseases

“…Another question is, has the COVID-19 infections impacted smokers? A United Kingdom study 205 in adults investigated changes in cigarette and EC use during the COVID-19 pandemic and what factors were associated with the changes. They found that many smokers and vapers tried to quit and a high proportion succeeded, others cut down or stayed the same.…”

“…The pandemic provided motivation to quit smoking and on the other hand prompted vapers to return to cigarette smoking. 205 , 206 In Pakistan 207 like in Jordan, 208 while many people stopped, reduced, or tried quitting smoking, some increased smoking, and some relapsed after quitting. Smokers in China 209 on average reduced their tobacco consumption after the nationwide viral outbreak had been contained, but there were differences: men, those with a longer history of consumption or residing in urban areas were less able to reduce their consumption.…”

Evaluating the Outcomes of the Menthol Cigarette Ban in England by Comparing Menthol Cigarette Smoking Among Youth in England, Canada, and the US, 2018-2020

“…National surveys in England provide mixed findings over this period, with some finding that smoking prevalence among young people decreased between 2018 and 2020 49 and others finding an increase. 50 This variability may be due to COVID-19 restrictions, which affected smoking behaviors, 51 , 52 , 53 and precludes attribution of changes in smoking prevalence to the menthol ban. Moreover, the impact of flavor restrictions on smoking initiation among young people is likely to occur gradually over the long term as youth age into the smoking initiation period without the inducement of flavored cigarettes.…”

Smoking trajectories over the first year of the pandemic in UK middle-aged adults: evidence from the UKHLS COVID-19 study

“…1 Some also argued that while intentions to quit smoking increased at the start of the pandemic, attempts have been less succesful because they were more likely to be unaided. 1 Limiting our understanding of changes over time, a majority of studies used relatively poor designs, i.e., cross-sectional samples, retrospective measures, and non-representative sampling, to examine these changes. 2 Finally, few studies have estimated whether changes at the start of the pandemic have been maintained after the end of summer 2020.…”

“…While a large number of studies have been published to understand changes in population levels of smoking over the past two years, evidence is mixed on whether it has actually increased, decreased, or stayed the same over time. [1][2][3] A recent meta-analysis of early changes estimated both a decrease in smoking prevalence and an increase in cigarette consumption among smokers. 2 The pandemic influenced smoking in both negative (e.g., boredom, financial stress) and positive (e.g., fear of complications) ways.…”