When a smoker quits and switches to an innovative nicotine product, the change never happens in isolation. Partners notice it. Families live it. And yet their perspective is almost never part of the conversation — and rarely, if ever, measured.
Living with the Switch is a new cross-national survey conducted by Ipsos on behalf of We Are Innovation (WAI), polling approximately 4,000 adults across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and Japan — specifically people who are close to someone who has made that switch in the past five years. Partners, family members, and close friends: the people with the most direct, day-to-day view of what changing from cigarettes to heated tobacco, vapes, or nicotine pouches looks like in practice.
The survey explores what they observed in terms of physical health and lifestyle changes; how they feel about harm reduction approaches and adult smokers’ right to access alternative products; how they compare different product categories; and whether the closeness of their relationship shapes their broader attitudes. Five countries, one consistent question: what does switching look like from the inside?
Join us for a breakfast debate on key findings of “Living with the Switch” and the real-world impact of innovative nicotine products on the people closest to former smokers. The answers will provide valuable insights for policymakers to inform more effective legislation.
