Cigarette smokers who switch to vaping are less likely to successfully quit traditional cigarettes compared to those who simply quit using tobacco.

University of California researchers add that those who try to quit smoking by vaping are also more likely to relapse compared to those who switch to other “combustible” tobacco products, such as cigars and pipes.

Their data shows just 42% of smokers who moved to e-cigarettes were not using traditional cigarettes at least one year or more after making the switch. By comparison, more than 50% of study participants who stopped using tobacco completely were still not smoking cigarettes one year later, though just over one-third relapsed.