Use of nicotine products, prescription drug products, and other methods to stop smoking by US adults in the 2022 National Health Interview Survey

Recent data on methods used by adults to stop smoking can inform tobacco control policies. Nationally representative Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey data from the 2022 National Health Interview Survey (N = 27,651) were used to analyze populations of US adults who self-reported having stopped smoking cigarettes for 6 months or longer in the last year and the methods they used, or who did not stop smoking but tried in the last year (N = 1735). In 2022, an estimated 2.9 million [95% CI 2.5 million–3.2 million] US adults had stopped smoking in the past year. Most were male, non-Hispanic White, aged < 55 years, college-educated, identified as straight, were not depressed, and currently drank alcohol. The most popular methods used to stop smoking were nicotine products (53.9% [47.4–60.3%]; 1.5 [1.3–1.8] million adults), especially e-cigarettes in combination with other methods (40.8% [34.4–47.5%]; 1.2 [0.9–1.4] million) and e-cigarettes alone (26.0% [20.4–32.3%]; 0.7 [0.6–0.9] million). Prescription drug products (8.1% [5.3–11.8%]; 0.2 [0.1–0.3] million) and non-nicotine, non-prescription drug methods (6.3% (3.9–9.7%); 0.2 [0.1–0.3] million) were less popular. A further 13.1 [12.2–14.0] million tried but did not stop smoking. Compared to those who tried but didn’t stop smoking, those who successfully stopped were more likely to be younger, degree-educated, and to use e-cigarettes to stop smoking. Many adults still attempt to stop smoking unaided. Interventions to reduce smoking could focus on populations that stopped smoking the least and encourage use of evidence-based methods.