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E-Cigarettes
The increased production and use of E-cigarettes has caused controversy between anti-smoking advocates and e-smokers.
"Some claim that e-cigarettes may act as “gateways” to the real thing. Others suggest that the flavourings sometimes added to the nicotine-bearing solution make e-cigarettes especially attractive to children—a sort of nicotine equivalent of “alcopop” drinks. But these objections seem to be driven by puritanism, not by reason."
I smoke a fair amount of hookah pens, and I can vouch that they're not all the same. Many have only natural flavoring and lack nicotine and tobacco. Those that don't are still extremely useful in breaking smokers' addictions.
I'd bet that lot of the bad rep comes from tobacco companies seeing them as a legitimate threat.
I consider them an acceptable alternative. While there is certainly an inherent danger involved in using any addictive substance, and there is a possibility of someone starting on e-cigarettes and progressing to regular cigarettes, I find it unlikely.
Mainly because the concentration of nicotine you can get for the e-cigarettes can be significantly higher than what you can get in cigarettes. Between that and the fact that you can puff on the thing anywhere, when I started using e-cigarettes, my tolerance to nicotine increased significantly to the point that when I grubbed a regular cigarette it basically did nothing.
That said, e-cigarettes were also rather instrumental in my quitting smoking and nicotine in general altogether; when I realized how much worse my addiction had become with what was supposed to be a better alternative, I knew I had to break it. I got a couple large containers of liquid, one with the highest concentration of nicotine, and another of the same flavor with no nicotine. I mixed these into vials that would each last me a week or two, ranging from full strength and gradually diluting all the way down to no nicotine. Over the course of a couple of months I dropped the dosage down gradually and eventually freed myself of the habit.
That said, these are by no means a method to quit smoking, as without a plan it is likely to make the habit worse; this is probably why they can't market it as such. I wonder if they could get approval to sell a 'kit' like I made for myself, with vials gradually decreasing in concentration, and market it is a way to quit smoking?
I should probably also note that my intent when I picked up the e-cig initially was not to quit using nicotine, but to replace cigarettes with what appeared to be a healthier alternative.
The problem is that there is a sizeable up-front cost with the e-cigs; A set of atomizers, batteries, blank cartridges, and the accessories for them (chargers et al) typically cost as much or more than a carton of cigarettes. Replacing the individual batteries and buying new atomizers and blank carts as needed isn't too much trouble, though. The problem I had was that the particular e-cig I was using was discontinued in favor of a new model- compatible batteries, atomizers et al were no longer being produced for it, and I didn't like the idea of making another large up-front payment to start with a different model, so I bought enough of the remaining stock of batteries, atomizers, and carts to last me through my quitting plan. I was aware of how bad my addiction had gotten, but it took that to actually spur me to quit altogether.
In retrospect, that model being discontinued is one of the best things that ever happened to me, though I was raging at the time. I do still miss taking smoke breaks at work though.
I actually saw a kid that looked like he was about fourteen, smoking an e-cig the other day, so kids do see something in it. It's kind of weird though, if you think about it, electronic gadgets are becoming alternatives to just about everything. Years ago, I would have never thought that people would be using an electronic alternative to cigarettes.
I'm not too knowledgeable on the subject, but I've heard that one of the things that makes cigarettes so bad for you is the paper that the tobacco is wrapped in. E-Cigs eliminate the paper and apparently the smoke is just water vapor. If that's true, then I'd say that it is definitely an acceptable alternative.
Have you ever noticed how smokers blow their smoke away from them, especially when driving, they'll blow it out the window? They love smoking so much, you'd think they'd want to seal themselves in there with it lol.
The e-smokers are pretty bad. They just blow their vapor into the faces of others. It is weird. They would have some decency smoking, but be all up in peoples faces with the e-cig.
That's probably because e-smokers are allowed to smoke inside, at least in most places. They've been told that the stinky ass vapor coming out of their e-cigs is harmless, so they just exhale wherever they please. I figure if they're going to do that shit, then I shouldn't get any weird looks when I fart next to them.
Nicotine and cigarettes are often lumped together as equally bad, but this is an error. While nicotine does have some negative affects, they are not significantly more harmful than the effects of caffein. The tar and other carcinogenes found in cigarette smoke is the main cause of the various health issues associated with smoking.
The main reason that there is all this controversy against e-cigarettes is the stigma against smoking or anything that looks like it. Not because e-cigarettes are actually just as bad.
While it may be found that these chemicals are harmful when taken into the lungs, I doubt they will be scientifically shown to be more or as harmful as taking in all of the various chemicals in cigarettes.
What do you mean when you say that they will find "second hand vapor is more intrusive than they claim" ? How can vapor that dissipates be more intrusive than smoke that lingers? I don't know about any studies that have researched this yet, but anecdotally I tried out second hand vapor on a person who is highly sensitive to cigarette smoke and she liked it.
That doesn't sound right. I saw a guy refill his thing with a "vial" that had a skull and crossbones on it.
While it may be found that these chemicals are harmful when taken into the lungs, I doubt they will be scientifically shown to be more or as harmful as taking in all of the various chemicals in cigarettes.
The current claim is that there is 0 harm. I think we will find out this is not true.
What do you mean when you say that they will find "second hand vapor is more intrusive than they claim" ? How can vapor that dissipates be more intrusive than smoke that lingers? I don't know about any studies that have researched this yet, but anecdotally I tried out second hand vapor on a person who is highly sensitive to cigarette smoke and she liked it.
The current claim is that you can't detect second hand vapor at all. I think we will find out that the second hand vapor is not 100% undetectable. I have my anecdote too, my wife is bothered by the e-vapor like she is to smoke, but not as bad.
I got the ingredients off of the Blu website. Perhaps other companies are different.
I have never seen an e-cig company claim 0 harm, they have nicotine and they want government approval.
When you say they will find it to be more intrusive, are you saying it will be found to be detectible? The e-cig vapor is not quite as bad as BO but it's as bad as cigarettes?
I got the ingredients off of the Blu website. Perhaps other companies are different.
Well, I hope you are right.
I have never seen an e-cig company claim 0 harm, they have nicotine and they want government approval.
Stephen Dorff says so in the commercials.
When you say they will find it to be more intrusive, are you saying it will be found to be detectible? The e-cig vapor is not quite as bad as BO but it's as bad as cigarettes?
I think that e-cigs will be worse than BO for some people. Being better than cancer sticks is not a big accomplishment, but yes, e-cigs are better than regular cigarettes.
He says he can use it without affecting the people around him. He says there's no offensive odor (subjective), he says there's no ash. He doesn't claim there is no harm.
While the rest of your post is pretty reasonable, I don't think a skull and crossbones on the vial is indicative of its content. It seems to be a pretty common motif for smoking and related accessories in general; check out a head shop sometime.
It's not a skull and crossbones in this case, but one of the brands that produces the liquid for e-cigarettes, 'totally wicked' uses a little caricature of a devil face for its logo, but their liquid is just a mix of nicotine, natural/artifical flavors, and either vegetable glycerin or propylene glycol. It's the brand I used for a while, and e-cigarettes were instrumental in my finally quitting smoking- not that they're marketed as an aid for quitting smoking or that it would even be legal to do so.
While the rest of your post is pretty reasonable, I don't think a skull and crossbones on the vial is indicative of its content. It seems to be a pretty common motif for smoking and related accessories in general; check out a head shop sometime.
Ok, but it looked more like the poison skull symbol.
It's not a skull and crossbones in this case, but one of the brands that produces the liquid for e-cigarettes, 'totally wicked' uses a little caricature of a devil face for its logo, but their liquid is just a mix of nicotine, natural/artifical flavors, and either vegetable glycerin or propylene glycol. It's the brand I used for a while, and e-cigarettes were instrumental in my finally quitting smoking- not that they're marketed as an aid for quitting smoking or that it would even be legal to do so.
Oh, I know what you mean; I believe it's intended to look like that symbol, but I'm not certain about that.
As for the e-cigs, no, I don't use them. Or cigarettes for that matter. I have had the odd cigar here or there, but we're talking maybe once or twice a year since I quit- or I should probably say "quit" because many people would say that if I still use tobacco products in any way, regardless of frequency, I haven't really quit.
I should note though that it takes a plan to actually use them to quit smoking; without a plan, the e-cigarettes are more likely to make the addiction worse- at least they did for me initially, and I have reason to believe that I may be more prone to addiction than most. I put more detail in my post on the other side if you're curious.
Really, it's not like I grew up in a time where there wasn't information available on the dangers of smoking or how addictive it is. I knew better than to try it in the first place, but I did it anyway. I think the fact that I was dumb enough to start in the first place outweighs the fact that I quit.
Education about tobacco stresses how addictive they are, but the reality of addiction and how subtle and insiduous it is cannot be stressed enough; the reality is far worse than it seems from an intellectual perspective...
Really, it's not like I grew up in a time where there wasn't information available on the dangers of smoking or how addictive it is. I knew better than to try it in the first place, but I did it anyway. I think the fact that I was dumb enough to start in the first place outweighs the fact that I quit.
Figuring out to use a gradual reduction of nicotine to ween yourself off outweighs both. :)
Lol, well thank you :) But it's not like I came up with it on my own, it's pretty much how 90% of programs for treating addiction work, although they generally use analogues to the original substance instead, like methadone programs for heroin users.
SHHHHHHHHHHHH! Keep that to yourself. No one needs to know. ;) Hehe. How many heroine addicts go out and buy methodone and saline in the same flavor and mix their own?
Maybe they'll start putting headphone jacks on them, so that people can listen to music while smoking. Maybe Apple will come out with an E-Cig and call it the iCig.
Will it be really short, so that when e-smokers feel the urge to smoke while their iCig is still charging, they'll have to sit in an awkward hunched position on the floor?
