Many people try to stop smoking with nicotine patches or gums, without always succeeding. A major international synthesis published on August 26, 2026 in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews shows that another aid does a little better: it would allow approximately 4 more people out of 100
to stop lastingly, compared to traditional nicotine substitutes, after at least six months of abstinence.
This help is the nicotine electronic cigarettes. Nicola Lindson’s team from the University of Oxford gathered data from 80 randomized controlled trials involving 29,861 adult smokers. Researchers estimate that, for every 100 people who try to quit, 8 to 10 succeed with a nicotine e-cigarette, compared to around 6 with patches or gums, and 5 with simple behavioral support or no support. The gain is modest for an individual, but significant on the scale of millions of smokers.
Nicotine electronic cigarette: a little more successful than patches and gums
The Cochrane review classifies the advantage of nicotine e-cigarettes over nicotine replacement treatments, including patches and gums, as based on a high level of evidence. In simple language, this means that instead of 6 ex-smokers out of 100 with substitutes, we observe around 10 out of 100 with nicotine vaping. Out of 1,000 quit attempts, 40 additional people actually quit smoking tobacco for at least six months.
This gain remains limited: the majority of smokers still cannot quit, even with this tool. Senior author of the review, Professor Jamie Hartmann-Boyce, of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, points out that “we have very strong evidence that regulated nicotine e-cigarettes are significantly less harmful than smoked tobacco. Given the consistency of the results, it is clear that this is a proven and realistic option for people who want to quit traditional cigarettes. This update includes nine new trials and our main conclusions have not changed.”
Behind the numbers: how the Cochrane review assessed the electronic cigarette
The Cochrane review follows a strict method: only randomized controlled trials, where participants are randomly assigned to several cessation aids, were included. The main criterion was smoking abstinence for at least six months, verified as much as possible by biological tests. This update, for which bibliographic searches end on January 1, 2026, is part of an analysis updated with new studies.
The authors also note that nicotine e-cigarettes do better than non-nicotine models, with approximately two additional ex-smokers out of 100. Faced with simple support or the absence of support, nicotine vaping leads to even more cessation, but the results are considered more uncertain. The most common side effects are throat or mouth irritation, headache, cough and nausea, which tended to decrease with continued vaping. The proportion of serious events remains low and does not appear to be higher with electronic cigarettes than with patches, while requiring longer-term monitoring.
Nicotine vaping: risks, limits and people concerned
The analysis only concerns devices containing nicotine and meeting the requirements of health authorities. Professor Jamie Hartmann-Boyce emphasizes that many devices sold do not meet these standards and that unauthorized products can present dangers, for example unstable batteries or harmful chemicals. People considering this option are encouraged to favor models on the lists of organizations such as the FDA in the United States or the MHRA in the United Kingdom, and to speak about it with a health professional or a cessation support service.
In France, Health Insurance estimates that “if vaping can be an effective tool for smoking cessation, vaping must remain transient. The risks of dependence are significant and the effects on health are still to be studied.“.
For researcher and lead author Dr Nicola Lindson, based at the University of Oxford, “quitting smoking is difficult and many smokers will have tried many times without success. For this reason, it’s important that there are multiple options to help someone quit, which can encourage them to keep trying. Although nicotine e-cigarettes are probably not completely risk-free, they are less harmful than smoking and this is the most important comparison for people who still smoke tobacco“.
These data relate to adults who are already dependent; they do not concern non-smokers or adolescents, for whom the objective remains not to be exposed to nicotine.