E-cigarettes could combat OBESITY! Vaping ‘suppresses appetite and flavours mimic eating’
VAPING could help fat Brits lose weight, scientists say.
Ex-smokers who use e-cigs are less likely to pile on the pounds.
The nicotine in them suppresses appetite, while the flavourings used – such as milk chocolate – mimic the effects of eating.
Experts say their findings currently only apply to smokers who are trying to quit.
But it raises the possibility that the devices might one day be used to help non-smokers fight the flab.
More than two million Brits – or one in 25 adults – now use e-cigs.
It’s been known for years that nicotine dampens down food cravings and many ex-smokers find their appetite soars when they give up the fags.
Boffins at Stirling University studied the effects of vaping on weight gain.
The results, published in the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research, showed ex-smokers ate less due to nicotine, flavourings and the hand-to-mouth action of vaping.
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Professor Linda Bauld, who took part in the study, said: “Weight gain prevents some smokers from quitting.
"We are not suggesting we promote e-cigarettes to non-smokers or non-vapers for weight management."
But fellow researcher, Professor Marewa Glover of Massey University in New Zealand, said: "Obesity is set to overtake smoking as the leading preventable cause of disease and early death.
"If there is a chance that flavoured vaping could help even a small proportion of people reduce the diabetes, cardiovascular and cancer risks associated with excess weight, the population health gains would be significant."
Earlier this year, leading heart experts voiced fears e-cigs could damage blood vessels almost as much as tobacco.
