Just Before The Ban Was Imposed in The UK, The Usage Rate Of Disposable Electronic Cigarettes Dropped Significantly.

A study has found that the popularity of disposable electronic cigarettes has declined as the UK is set to implement a nationwide sales ban on June 1st. Researchers believe that e-cigarette users are shifting to refillable and rechargeable tank-style e-cigarettes due to the expected ban to take effect.
Research from University College London (UCL) shows that the proportion of 16-24-year-olds who mainly used disposable e-cigarettes dropped from 63% to 35% over the past year, almost halving. After several years of significant growth, the overall e-cigarette usage rate among people over 16 has stabilized between January 2024 and January 2025.
The UK government's aim in banning disposable e-cigarettes is to prevent the generation of such waste, which is mostly non-recyclable and eventually ends up in landfills or pollutes the natural environment. The ban is also intended to address the rising smoking rate among teenagers and protect children from harm.
Dr. Helen Wall, a general practitioner, said that the NHS's recommendation is "very clear" - e-cigarettes should be regarded as one of the methods for quitting smoking. "But for non-smokers, especially young people, using e-cigarettes can be quite harmful," she added.
The main author of the study, Dr. Sarah Jackson from the UCL Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, analyzed the survey data on e-cigarette usage habits in England, Wales, and Scotland before and after the ban was announced. The data came from the "Smoking Toolkit Study" project and included information from 88,611 people aged 16 and above.
Before the ban was announced (from January 2022 to January 2024), the e-cigarette usage rate among people over 16 increased from 8.9% to 13.5%, with a more significant increase in the 16-24 age group, rising from 17% to 26.5%. After the ban was announced, researchers found that the number of users in all age groups (especially the 16-24 age group) who chose disposable e-cigarettes as their main option decreased.
Dr. Jackson believes that more people are turning to refillable and reusable devices rather than quitting smoking completely. Disposable e-cigarettes are devices that are pre-filled with e-liquid and thrown away, while tank-style devices have refillable e-liquid tanks and rechargeable batteries, which have a longer lifespan and are more economically viable in the long term.
Regarding the policy change, Dr. Jackson pointed out that e-cigarette manufacturers have responded quickly to the upcoming ban, with popular disposable e-cigarette brands launching rechargeable versions. "These products are highly similar in design, color, flavor, and even price to the original versions," she said.
Although Dr. Jackson believes it is too early to assess whether the ban on disposable e-cigarettes can effectively curb the use among teenagers, she emphasized that policymakers face a balancing challenge: "We know that taking measures to reduce the size of the e-cigarette-using population among teenagers is reasonable, but the primary task of public health is still the issue of traditional cigarettes. Traditional cigarettes are much more harmful, causing a large number of deaths each year, so we must ensure that any policy does not hinder people's use of e-cigarettes as an effective smoking cessation tool."