WhatsApp-Based Coaching Program to Support Smoking and Vaping Cessation Among Young People: Pre-Post Study on Acceptance and Preliminary Efficacy
Abstract
Abstract Background The use of tobacco cigarettes and electronic nicotine products is widespread among young people in Switzerland. At the same time, the instant messaging platform WhatsApp (Meta Platforms, Inc) is the most frequently used smartphone app in this population group. The provision of individually tailored, evidence-based coaching messages via WhatsApp seems promising to support smoking cessation in adolescents and young adults. Objective This study aims to test the feasibility, acceptance, and preliminary efficacy of a newly developed, semiautomated WhatsApp-based intervention program to support smoking and vaping cessation and reduction in adolescents and young adults. Methods Recruitment took place in Switzerland in 2023 and 2024 via various channels, both online and offline. For a period of 11 weeks, regular users of cigarettes or electronic cigarettes, aged between 16 and 30 years, received individually tailored messages on how to deal with cravings or stressful situations and how to stop or reduce smoking. A separate WhatsApp channel provided the opportunity to ask individual questions to a counselor. A one-group pre-post design was used to obtain preliminary information on the acceptability and potential efficacy of the program. Results A total of 167 young people (mean age 23.2, SD 4.0 years; n=95, 56.9% women and n=72, 43.1% men) who regularly smoked tobacco cigarettes (n=81, 48.5%), vaped electronic nicotine products (n=17, 10.2%), or used both (n=69,…
Read the paper
Related studies
- Tobacco and COPD: presenting the World Health Organization (WHO) Tobacco Knowledge Summary
- Comparative effects of e-cigarette smoking on periodontal status, salivary pH, and cotinine levels
- Association between exposure to environmental pollutants and increased oral health risks, a comprehensive review
- Influence of gestational window on offspring vascular health in rodents with in utero exposure to electronic cigarettes
- Natural products as kinase inhibitors in lung cancer: molecular mechanisms, therapeutic potential, and clinical trials
- Nicotine in electronic cigarettes
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.