ecig-news.com

Archive for the ‘Electronic cigarettes in the media’ Category

By Katelyn Mohen

Envision five years from now teachers telling students not to vaporize tobacco.

However unlikely this scenario may seem now, vaporized cigarettes will become a well-known and warned-against product in the near future.

This battery-powered device resembles a normal cigarette, but an atomizer located within the gadget delivers one puff of a vaporized mix of nicotine and flavorings without certain additives and the tar of a regular cigarette.

It also produces a fine mist when exhaled that resembles that of actual tobacco smoke.

Though electronic cigarette distributers do not advertise the device as a way to cut down on tobacco intake, Matt Salmon, a spokesman for the Electronic Cigarette Association, claims “It’s a really good alternative for people who smoke tobacco.”

This is due in part to the regulating option of the device’s inner chamber where the amount of nicotine can be both increased and decreased manually by the user.

Despite its benefits for tobacco junkies, the FDA has prohibited the import of E-Cigarettes from China, the main supplier of the gadget, into the United States.

However, enough of these vaporizing products exist in the country to continue being distributed by E-Cigarette companies on the web and in malls across the U.S.

Hardly any tests or evidence have been conducted on the smokeless cigarettes, establishing a strong caution amongst health officials of the product, but no regulation from the FDA.

With its increasing popularity, the FDA holds a responsibility to the American people to conduct greater research into the E-Cigarette and the true effects it has on users.

Strict regulations must be imposed on the device to prevent its trendy appeal from influencing the young and old alike who do not need to become hooked on such an equally, if not more, addictive version of the common cigarette.

According to a representative from ECigarettesChoice.com, Electronic Cigarettes are unavailable to minors across the country as they contain nicotine.

However, this does not mean kids and teens are unable to get their hands on the tobacco gadget. As is common knowledge, anything is attainable with money and connections, and kids have always been cleverer than adults give them credit for.

Mariah Sanderson, coordinator of the Burlington Partnership for a Healthy Community, cites that the risks associated with smokeless cigarettes are not as severe in terms of the risk the inhaled and secondhand smoke the device creates.

Yet nicotine remains ever-present and a serious factor in the harm smokeless cigarettes are capable of inflicting on users.

Additionally, she finds it worrisome the success the Tobacco Industry has found with the Electronic Cigarette in its plight to expose and normalize cigarettes in the public eye once again.

Introduced in the United States two years ago, electronic cigarettes are no longer a novelty item but a popular option for many smokers — especially those who want to quit. Inhaling on the cigarette-shaped device activates a built-in battery, which heats up a mixture of water, nicotine and propylene glycol to give the “smoker” a vapor hit of the addictive substance found in cigarettes — but without the smoke. It even lights up at the other end, mimicking the tip of a cigarette.

E-cigarettes are the latest of a wave of nicotine-packing products — including bottled water and lollipops — to face the wrath of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency believes it has the authority to regulate them. But marketers of the electronic devices, most of which are made in China, are putting up a big fight. They have sued, arguing that the FDA has no jurisdiction over their merchandise because, unlike nicotine patches or gum, which the agency does regulate, it is not a smoking-cessation product. They also deny the FDA’s contention that e-cigarettes are a drug-delivery device, which the agency also regulates.

In their zeal to avoid regulation, though, spokesmen for this fast-growing business have been engaging in doublespeak. They argue that e-cigarettes are just a “smoking alternative,” and in the same breath tout their superiority over gum or patches as a way to divert smokers from tobacco products.

A kit costing $70 to $100 will last a pack-a-day smoker perhaps 10 days, according to the Electronic Cigarette Assn., and this year, U.S. sales are expected to reach $100 million. Is that a good thing or not? No one knows, which is why the FDA should have regulatory jurisdiction over the devices.

E-cigarettes might help smokers quit by providing the long inhale — and nicotine fix — of smoking. Because the devices are smokeless, people could potentially light up at a restaurant or on an airplane without breaking any laws. But with their candy flavors and their image as relatively harmless, e-cigarettes provide a new way to hook customers — including teenagers — on nicotine. That could conversely lead to more smoking. Meanwhile, the long-term effects of breathing nicotine and propylene glycol haven’t been determined — not to mention diethylene glycol, an ingredient in antifreeze that the FDA has found in many e-cigarettes.

The agency wants sales of the devices halted until, as with other drug products, animal studies and clinical trials determine whether they are indeed safe. We agree. A check of Internet chat sites shows that the devices are regularly used by smokers trying to quit tobacco. Should the courts rule against the FDA, Congress will have to step in. With the ever-expanding peddling of nicotine in the United States, the public needs federal oversight of attempts to advance an addictive drug.

Copyright © 2009, The Los Angeles Times

Bergen County considers ban of the revolutionary alternative to smoking

BY AARTI N. MAHARAJ

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

A new resolution is under consideration by the Bergen County Board of Chosen Freeholders who plan on voting later this week to stop the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in places such as in vehicles, buildings and in county parks where children are present.

“E-cigarettes are marketed as a ‘healthier’ alternative to cigarette smoking, but they carry potential health risks,” said Bergen County Freeholder Vernon Walton

These revolutionary cigarettes are driven by modern microelectronic technology and are designed to look, feel and taste like a traditional cigarette. It consists of a white cylindrical tube with a brown exterior that is complemented by a red, glowing tip. Inside of the cartridges are liquid, nicotine flavor and other additives are used to enhance the smoker’s e-cigarette experience.

The user inhales through a mouthpiece where air triggers an indicator that switches on a minute battery-powered heater. When exhaled, the simulated smoke that is emitted is in the form of a vapor mist that instantly evaporates into the air.

This product promises to provide its customers the feel of a non-smoker. Some of its benefits include no more ashes, tar and exposure to massive amounts of smoke.

“I just started using this and I feel like my cravings have been minimized,” says Nichole Figuero.

Figuero believes that by using this cigarette her body feels slightly different and she no longer smokes as much. Although these E-cigs are quite pricey she still thinks that “it is a good idea and I am sticking to it! ”

Currently this product is available in a variety of flavors such as apple, mint, banana, strawberry and chocolate, making them appealing to kids and teenagers.

“These devices are available online and in shopping malls. Since they’re being sold with no legal age restriction, kids and teens could easily buy them,” says Freeholder Julie O’Brien.

Recent reports from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reveal that this new wave of e-cigarettes that has gripped many Americans may not be safe.

“An analysis of 18 samples of cartridges from two leading e-cigarette brands found cancer-causing substances in half the samples,” states an FDA press release.

“One sample was found to contain diethylene glycol, a toxic chemical found in antifreeze. Several other samples were found to contain carcinogens, including nitrosamines.”

In 2008, the World Health Organization mentioned, “we have no scientific evidence to confirm the product’s safety and efficacy. Its marketers should immediately remove from their web sites and other informational materials any suggestion that WHO considers it to be a safe and effective smoking cessation aid.”

Walton added, “that is why on behalf of the Freeholder Board, I am sponsoring this resolution in hopes of educating people about the possible dangers of these devices.”

However, the Electronic Cigarette Association does not claim e-cigarettes are devices used to stop smoking and they have not yet declared any health risks.

As Figuero gently puffs on her electronic cigarette with a slight amount of vapor escaping from her lips she says, ” this is our way of getting rid of this bad habit, I do not think it should be banned in Jersey.”