Changes in expenditure on vaping in the context of the rise of disposable vapes and impending regulatory changes: a population study in Great Britain, 2021–2025 Background The vaping market in Great Britain has shifted rapidly since 2021, driven by the rise of disposable vapes, regulatory announcements, changing consumer behaviours and market responses. This ...

New paper suggests the UK disposable vape ban may have unintentionally made vaping more affordable for young people.

The ban prompted vape manufacturers to introduce disposable-like reusable vapes with lower ongoing costs than disposable equivalents.

tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/earl...

Why is smoking so addictive – and what are the best ways to give up? That first cigarette can lead to a lifetime of dependency, as well as cancer, strokes, heart attacks … Here’s why smokers crave their nicotine hit – and how they can fight back

We all know it, but it bears repeating: smoking is highly addictive & terrible for your health. Here’s some tips on how to stop - www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

Our new paper suggests that approximately 1.6 million adults in Great Britain have recently used weight loss jabs (most commonly Mounjaro) and a further 3.3 million are interested in doing so in the near future.

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

In our new paper in The Lancet Public Health, we find that nicotine pouch use is rising in Britain, driven largely by increases among young adults, particularly young men.

🔗 Press release:
ucl.ac.uk/news/2025/de...

📄 Paper:
thelancet.com/journals/lan...

New paper shows nicotine use is rising among young adults in England, but they are increasingly moving away from daily cigarette smoking towards vaping or non-daily smoking.

Traditional daily smoking patterns remain more prevalent among older adults.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Has alcohol consumption in England returned to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels? A monthly population study, 2014 to 2024 buff.ly/OQC8Ii3 @melissaoldham.bsky.social @drsarahejackson.bsky.social @lionshahab.bsky.social @victimofmaths.bsky.social @jholmessheff.bsky.social @jamiebrown.bsky.social

Another new @addictionjournal.bsky.social paper out today looking at trends in alcohol consumption in England and trying to answer the important question as to whether this has returned to pre-pandemic levels after rising during the first lockdown.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

What tranSPIREs from recent research on e-cigarettes? Towards a comprehensive approach to model vaping policies

Editorial by Lion Shahab and Hazel Squires

academic.oup.com/ntr/advance-... @lionshahab.bsky.social

Associations between non‐daily smoking and motivation to stop smoking: A population study in England 2021–2024 Background and aims An increasing proportion of adults in England who smoke cigarettes do not smoke every day and may see quitting smoking as less important than those who smoke daily. This study ai...

New in @addictionjournal.bsky.social , we find adults who smoke cigarettes non-daily tend to be more motivated to quit smoking than those who smoke every day, especially among older and less advantaged people.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Two of the best stop smoking medications have been available in the UK since 2024 – so why is no one using them? Why almost no one is using the stop-smoking drug that could save thousands of lives.

New brief piece on the terrible underuse of effective smoking cessation medications in the UK by @jlivbanks.bsky.social, Dr Dimitra Kale and myself. There’s a need to get the message out to smokers trying to quit!
theconversation.com/two-of-the-b...

Although smoking prevalence is now similar across regions of GB, there is variation in cigarette consumption among adults who smoke.

Mean cigarettes smoked/day and % smoking >20/day:
🟡Highest in North East and Scotland
🟡Lowest in London and South West

academic.oup.com/ntr/advance-...

Our new paper provides up-to-date evidence on cigarette consumption across Great Britain.

🟡~28.6 billion cigarettes are smoked each year.

🟡There are persistent disparities across socioeconomic groups, regions, and nations.

academic.oup.com/ntr/advance-... @ntrjournal.bsky.social

The Smoking Toolkit Study shows substantial declines in smoking prevalence and cigarette consumption among adults in England since 2007.

However, the extent of these changes differs according to how the outcomes are defined.

Research letter - Tobacco Control
tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/earl...

#Vaping cessation strategies and triggers for relapse amongst people from #NewZealand who have vaped

Mehdi Rahimi, Bodo Lang, @lionshahab.bsky.social, Jamie Brown, Amanda Palmer, Joya Kemper, Chris Bullen, et al

@aucklanduni.bsky.social @flindersuniversity.bsky.social

doi.org/10.1111/dar....

Level of support for proposed vaping policies: an online survey of UK vapers, 2024 The UK government has proposed a range of policies to reduce youth vaping. This study aimed to understand levels of support for the various policies a…

Our new paper examines level of support for proposed vaping policies via an online survey of UK vapers age 16+.

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... @jamiebrown.bsky.social @lionshahab.bsky.social @ucl-targ.bsky.social @sharoncox.bsky.social

How much does the absence of the ‘hidden population’ from United Kingdom household surveys underestimate smoking prevalence? buff.ly/cCYCYMC Emma Beard @lionshahab.bsky.social @jamiebrown.bsky.social @sharoncox.bsky.social

Important analysis, led by Dr Emma Beard, showing that absolute smoking rates in the UK are likely underestimated by more than 1% as surveys do not capture disadvantaged, hidden populations. doi.org/10.1111/add.... @jamiebrown.bsky.social @sharoncox.bsky.social

Changes in vaping trends since the announcement of an impending ban on disposable vapes: A population study in Great Britain Background/Aim There has been a rapid rise in vaping prevalence among youth and young adults in Great Britain since disposable vapes started to become popular in 2021. In January 2024, the governmen.....

New paper reveals two key changes in vaping trends since the UK government announced plans to ban disposable vapes.

1. The rise in vaping prevalence has stalled, including among young adults.

2. People who vape are increasingly using reusable devices.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Modeling the Impact of Vaping: What We Need to Know and Which Methods to Use

Commentary by Lion Shahab

academic.oup.com/ntr/article/... @lionshahab.bsky.social

Recommendations for future research exploring e-cigarette use and later cigarette smoking in young people: Results from a consultation exercise buff.ly/vzelU0v

Since 2013, the proportion of adults in England reporting single and multiple non-combustible nicotine product use has risen, with the prevalence of single product use almost tripling and multiple product use doubling, find Sharon Cox et al.

academic.oup.com/ntr/advance-... @sharoncox.bsky.social

New paper shows smoking, and to a lesser extent non-combustible nicotine use, is associated with higher levels of alcohol consumption and risky drinking

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Electronic cigarettes and subsequent cigarette smoking in young people: A systematic review Aims To assess the evidence for a relationship between the use of e-cigarettes and subsequent smoking in young people (≤29 years), and whether this differs by demographic characteristics. Methods ...

New expansive CRUK-funded systematic review led by the brilliant @jhb19.bsky.social on youth transitions between vaping & smoking doi.org/10.1111/add..... It’s complex: there’s potential inverse associations between vaping & smoking at population level but positive association at individual level.

One in 20 adults in England both smoke and vape Just over one in 20 adults in England both smoke and vape, according to a new study by UCL researchers.

One in 20 adults in England both smoke and vape, a figure that has risen sharply since 2021, with a growing proportion vaping more often than they smoke, finds a new study led by @drsarahejackson.bsky.social and Prof @jamiebrown.bsky.social @uclpophealthsci.bsky.social www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2025/ja...

The SRNT-E debate is back!

Please submit your ideas to me! DO NOT REPLY HERE
s.cox@ucl.ac.uk

1. What is the topic?
2. Why does it matter/now?
3. Why should we care?
4. What could we learn from this debate?

Submissions into me, rated by a panel (blind)

@drsarahejackson.bsky.social

New paper explores changing patterns of 'dual use' of vaping and smoking in England in the context of a rapidly evolving vape market.

Dual use prevalence has increased but there's been a shift away from more frequent smoking toward more frequent vaping.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

New paper examines the prevalence and real-world effectiveness of smoking cessation aids in England.

Results show that while a range of effective aids are available, around half of people try to quit using less effective forms of support or none at all.

jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

FDA Proposes Significant Step Toward Reducing Nicotine to Minimally or Nonaddictive Level in Cigarettes and Certain Other Combusted Tobacco Products FDA issued a proposed rule that, if finalized, would limit the level of nicotine in certain combusted tobacco products.

After NZ, US becomes 2nd country to propose very low nicotine standard for combustibles (www.fda.gov/news-events/...). Whether this survives an incoming Trump administration is dubitable, but - alongside incoming smokefree generation legislation in UK - may be a sign of things to come #endgame.

NTR is officially on BlueSky!

We're looking forward to sharing all of the exciting research published in our journal with you. Follow along for updates...

Why I have resigned from the Royal Society The Royal Society is a venerable institution founded in 1660, whose original members included such eminent men as Christopher Wren, Robert H...

New blogpost:
deevybee.blogspot.com/2024/11/why-...