Do fruit-flavored e-cigarettes help long-term smokers switch from regular cigarettes?
The role of flavor in the substitutability of e-cigarettes for combustible cigarettes among persistent smokers
This will see if fruit-flavored e-cigarettes help adult smokers who can't quit switch away from regular cigarettes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pennsylvania NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Philadelphia, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11258847 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would be asked to try e-cigarettes with different flavor types (fruit versus tobacco/menthol) and report how satisfying they are. The team will follow adult smokers over time to see who switches from combustible cigarettes to e-cigarettes and who keeps using both. Researchers will combine self-reports with lab measures, like breath or blood tests, to track exposure to nicotine and harmful chemicals. The work mixes lab, population, and clinical methods to understand initial and sustained switching.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults aged 21 or older who are current persistent cigarette smokers and are willing to try e-cigarettes would be ideal candidates.
Not a fit: Non-smokers, people under 21, pregnant people, and smokers seeking complete nicotine-free quitting are unlikely to benefit from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the results could help smokers who cannot quit move to less harmful, non-combustible nicotine products and reduce exposure to toxic chemicals.
How similar studies have performed: Laboratory and survey studies suggest fruit flavors may make e-cigarettes more appealing to some smokers, but there are no prospective clinical trials directly testing this substitution question.
Where this research is happening
Philadelphia, United States
- University of Pennsylvania — Philadelphia, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Audrain-Mcgovern, Janet E — University of Pennsylvania
- Study coordinator: Audrain-Mcgovern, Janet E
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.