Although the British government is considering banning disposable e-cigarettes, the head of the British National Health Service (NHS) recently recommended that smokers quit smoking through e-cigarettes to reduce the risk of cancer.

As part of a new NHS campaign for September, the Humber and North Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership and Yorkshire Cancer Research aim to raise awareness of e-cigarettes as a Far less harmful alternatives to smoking.

It is understood that smoking is the leading cause of cancer in the region, causing more than 4,500 new cancer cases in Yorkshire every year. Cigarette smoke contains thousands of chemicals, at least 70 of which are known to cause cancer.

According to the Office of Health Improvement and Disparities, the risks of vaping represent only a fraction of the risks of smoking. Despite this, four in 10 smokers mistakenly believe that vaping is as dangerous as or more dangerous than smoking.

Dave Jones, tobacco program manager at Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Council, said: "There is a lot of confusion about e-cigarettes, but when it is used as a tool to quit smoking it is very effective and has a high success rate. We will All smokers who find it difficult to quit cigarettes are urged to switch to e-cigarettes as the health risks are immediately reduced.”

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) recently reported that nearly three in 10 (27%) smokers have never tried e-cigarettes and the NHS fully supports those who choose to use them. It's worth noting, though, that officials say e-cigarettes are not recommended for people under 18 or non-smokers.