Before I start, I feel it might be worthwhile pointing out a few things. For those who are not aware of electronic cigarettes, these devices are intended to be an alternative to "normal" smoking. They use a battery-operated heating element to vapourise a liquid containing nicotine, thereby mimicking the effect of inhaling normal tobacco smoke - without any combustion taking place - whilst still delivering nicotine. The liquid is usually comprised of several substances and with one exception these are known to be perfectly safe; usually it involves: propylene glycol, water, glycerol and nicotine. I say "one exception" because pure nicotine is seriously toxic stuff; pure caffiene is also pretty toxic, but with electronic cigarettes, as with caffienated drinks, it's not pure nicotine and is very heavily diluted. The strongest solution I've found so far is 36mg/ml (milligrams per millilitre), which is roughly on par with strong cigarettes (which is what I smoke anyway). You can legally use them indoors - there's no combustion involved - but it's not usually a good idea; people will often automatically assume that you're smoking, and I have witnessed a few angry exchanges in the past. I can't speak for others, but I didn't buy one to get around the smoking ban. Secondly, I am not interested in pious comments about how I should just give up altogether, how I'm ruining my health, how much of an evil person I am, how I'm poisoning myself/others/cute baby ducks/the planet, how much it costs, etc, etc, etc...and so on ad-infinitum. I know it's seriously bad for me and I know damn well how expensive it is. Smokers aren't some evil breed apart from normal humans, and we're pefectly capable of reasoning and being rational: we know most of the aforementioned points already. I have tried numerous forms of NRT and/or cessation aids over the years - counselling, patches, gum, inhilators, cold turkey, Allen Carr's book, etc - and nothing has really worked. I've managed to quit for weeks or months at a time, but there's always something that lulls me back again. I am smoker who finds it a real pain in the balls to quit, and that isn't going to change any time soon. With all that out of the way, I am interested to hear the opinion on electronic cigarettes, from smokers and non-smokers alike. In terms of actual hard science, there's very little out there. A further report on the longer-term effects of e-cigarettes is due out in Q1 2013 (by the WHO, or the MHRA maybe? Can't remember who's running the study off the top of my head). The FDA has reported the presence of trace amounts of TSNAs (tobacco-specific nitrosamines), which are likely a result of the process of extracting the nicotine from tobacco; these compounds are also present in licensed NRT products, and also in trace amounts. There are quite a few of studies done on the safety of the liquid/vapour, but many of them have been carried out at manufacturer behest; it's difficult to judge the independance of such studies. One definitive statement that regulators and bodies such as the FDA and MHRA have made is that they do not recommend them as a "nicotine replacement therapy". In that regard, I would certainly agree: by claiming that it is an effective nicotine replacement therapy, or smoking cessation aid, you are making a medical claim - a medical claim that damn well needs to be supported as evidence. That's not to say that they aren't effective at helping people quit, but you have to be able to back up claims like that. However retailers and manufacturers are advertising the products as an "alternative" for cigarettes and do not sell them to minors; it was on this basis that an attempted ban by the FDA was overturned by a court in America. I first bought an electronic cigarette around 2 years ago, but I found it a bit of a pain to use. It was an older model and the cartridge used a small piece of sponge to hold the liquid. In theory the idea was that the liquid was drawn into the "atomiser" (the vapouriser) and the vapour is drawn back past the sponge through channels in the cartridge. In practice I often ended up with a cartridge dribbling liquid into my mouth; I therefore went back to real cigarettes as it was far easier than having messy liquid everywhere. The device itself is great: you certainly don't want for nicotine (at least as far as I can detect), and because the vapour is visible it gives the feeling that you're actually smoking something (even though it's just vapour). I've recently purchased another one after poring over my cigarette/tobacco spending for a few days. This one has a different cartridge design however and does not suspend the liquid in a sponge; instead the cartridge has a tank for the liquid, which is then drawn directly into the atomiser. So far I haven't had one instance of the stuff leaking from the mouthpiece. I'm getting on quite well with it at the moment. I do still smoke normal cigarettes at work; partly because I'm getting rather bored of explaining what it is to curious onlookers, and partly because I feel like a bit of a pratt when I'm using it. Barring one or two days when both batteries died, I've been using it almost exclusively when I'm at home. I would definitely welcome regulation on at least the production of the liquid: some of the studies already carried out have determined that the advertised nicotine dose of various "e-liquid" brands does not actually hold up to scrutiny. Also in some cases, trace amounts of nicotine were found in liquids advertised to be nicotine free. Regulation would ensure that the production process is consistent and that the product actually delivers what's marked on the box. However my biggest fear is that of taxation: the main cost of cigarettes these days is increased taxation, due to the misguided belief that making an addictive substance more expensive will stop people from using it. Would regulation as a "tobacco product" mean similar levels of taxation as normal cigarettes? That would undermine one of the main benefits to me; it's not that I want to avoid tax, but the amount of tax on cigarettes is absurd. Of course it could go completely the other way and be accepted as a proven NRT. The pitfall with this is that, as with any other pharmaceutical product, the cost of all the research, testing, quality control, etc, will be passed back on to the consumer. Either way, it'd make it far more expensive than it is now. One of the great things about these devices is that once you've gotten over the initial cost, the cost of buying replacement cartridges and liquid is pretty damn low. The starter kit for my current model cost me £40 and a 10ml bottle of liquid costs around £5 (which seems to be lasting me a good while, so far). The cartridges for my particular model are re-usable, so I don't have to keep buying spares; the tank caps do need replacing though (as they are pierced by the atomiser and therefore single use), but it's £1.50 for 10 of them and I've still got around 15 spare. By comparison, I was spending £15 a week on tobacco - if I were to buy "straights", I'd be spending around £40-£50 per week (I get through about 10-15 a day). I don't think I'm alone in saying this, but common sense says that there is no possible way that they can be as bad for you as a normal cigarette. Much of the harm from smoking comes from the actual smoke, rather than the inhalation of nicotine: the act of burning a combustible substance and then inhaling the fumes. This is also the reason for the multitude of harmful chemicals and carcinogens in cigarettes. If they still deliver nicotine, still make it "feel like you're smoking" and are less harmful than a normal cigarette, that cannot possibly be a bad thing. If it helps get me off altogether (which is sort of what I'm partially aiming for), then that's all the better. As mentioned however, I'm interested to know what others think on the subject.
My mum uses these but the vapor ones that contain no nicotine. But they are only for people who want to quit smoking, she had to quit with having an heart attack last year. She likes them because when she has the urge for a cigarette a couple of inhales of this and it goes, then my sister tried them and didn't like the taste she said.
I bought one for the wife but she didn't get on with it, I think mostly due to the attention it draws. I too have some concerns about the inhalation of vapour but then I suppose it is no different to sitting in a steam room. I was shocked at the cost of a pack of cigarettes though!
As far as I know, that's the same principle as all electronic cigarettes - vapourisers. Usually you can use whatever liquid/cartridges you want with it, which includes nicotine-free variants. I think the concerns aren't necessarily around inhaling vapour, but what the long-term effects are of continually inhaling the combination of ingredients used in a vapour form. The ingredients themselves (aside from nicotine!) are perfectly safe in their own right, but electronic cigarettes are a relatively new idea and there's very little information about. It's got to be better for you than a normal cigarette, but is it almost as bad as the real thing? Though I certainly do agree that the attention it draws does rather put me off. But the alternative is either: going cold turkey (which has never worked for me and is extremely stressful), using some other vile and/or ineffective NRT (nicotine gum tastes like chewing an ashtray - not pleasant), or continue smoking normal cigarettes (which really is a bad and expensive idea).
I've been using them on and off for years, and to be frank I'm not going to 'get into it' here as there is a whole heap of vitriol, disinformation, lack of knowledge and hate that accompanies this subject from those that should know better, and I don't need that aggro right now. However; I agree to a point, some regulation is needed, but not much. Personally I prefer to buy from suppliers who use only UK produced nic liquid and can back up the formula and ingredients with independent lab results, this is how I like to keep my risk level low. I took up the E-cig from a cost perspective, and I fear when people start calling these e-cigs NRT's as it can only attract envious glances from the treasury and lead us down the path of knee jerk regulation and taxes and even worse a limiting our available sources and choices to a very bland CE marked gubbermint approved product
I have only tried a cursory puff or two from a colleague so I'm not really in a position to comment about them per se, but one thing I will say is that everyone I know who has bought one has gone back to the real thing within 3 months.
Girlfriend uses them. Says her cough's gone and feels better. It can't be worse for you than normal smoking.
Have to agree with that. In general, anything remotely connected to "smoking" seems to be treated with not only disdain but with utter contempt in some cases. While looking into electronic cigarettes in particular, I was surprised with the amount of hate and negativity I encountered; even from usually-reputable sites/sources, such as Science Based Medicine That's exactly my worry. Right now it's very cheap - which was also one of my primary motivations - but that would very quickly change if they were formally recognised as an NRT or regulated as a tobacco product. Regulation would certainly be welcome - from a quality control point of view - but it does bring a rather large raft of potential side-effects which are certainly not welcome. Out of interest, which liquid/supplier do you use?
7 of my mates started using the nucig ones for new years resolution, they are still all not smoking. At the end of the day though the determination had to come from you,they are only a support tool, now a resolution Sent from my HTC Sensation XE with Beats Audio using Tapatalk 2
I can't comment on them directly but a work colleague started using them regularly and I have noticed one thing. He uses it much more frequently than real cigarettes, maybe its not as strong but I suspect its more to do with the ease of using them. You don't have to go outside or do anything else. I would say his use is at least double what it used to be.
Eco-pure if I want a simple menthol that just works out of the bottle Liberty flights if I'm buying unflavoured at triple strength to mix my own liquids Totally Wicked to buy flavours to mix with the above And there's the rub when it comes to calling them a NRT, they can mimic a real cigarette in terms of everything so closely that swapping between the real or electronic can be done at the drop of a hat and it requires stupid amount of will power to make the switch 100%. For me it's not just the smoking of the thing, when I'm on the e-cig proper without real smokes it becomes more of a hobby occupying my time, experimenting with attys, battery's, fluids, etc etc The absorption mechanism of the nicotine is thought to be different with a vapour over the usual smoke, or he may not have his liquid at a strength which matches his usual intake on cigarettes.
The vapor one she has is electronic I have to usb charge it every so often, and she uses cartridges. My mum prefers the lozenges, one everytime she has the urge and the crave has gone. So out of the electronic cigarettes and lozenges the prefers the lozenges.
It's certainly better for those around here. People around here, even with the smoking ban, will light up anywhere they please and dare you to do something about it. That includes around me, with a restrictive lung issue and around my son who is on oxygen. They tell us move our kid, it's their right to do what they want. Thankfully, the cops around here say very different. I think someone ended up tased over smoking here, and I can't say it upset me at all. I smoked for a while as a teenager, but with my health as poor as it is now, just a whiff of cigarette smoke and I'm hitting my rescue inhaler.I've got pretty much no sympathy for smokers having issues finding a place to smoke in public, though when in private I recognize their rights and simply don't visit their houses. They visit us, and they don't mind going outside or not smoking for our health (fragile as it is) and I leave them alone about what they do in private. Public smoking, though, hurts others as much as or more than it hurts you, which in any other circumstance is flat illegal. If you want to use these e-cigarettes, I support it. If I could, I'd buy them for people. It takes a habit that hurts more than just you and reduces that to you, and far less harm. I'm all about that. I can be around friends that smoke again, and I worry less for their long term health as well. I hope they work like you want them too.
It worked for family members for getting off cigs. They slowly over time reduced the nicotine till now, it's just the non nicotine oil and the habit of puffing on something.
As much as I am all for personal freedoms, and am against state and fed. .govs telling people what they can and can't do to themselves, I was happy when Cali. banned public smoking all those years ago. When traveling to the east coast (Carolina's specifically), I was surprised and i'll with all the smoking everywhere in public businesses.
I think they make you look as much as a knob sucking on them as people look smoking the real thing. However its a good thing if they work and no stinky smell for those around them.
Are they the ones you can recharge by USB? I used to work with a guy who had one... First time I saw what looked like a lit *** glowing at one end, stuffed into the USB port of his office PC, I thought he'd cracked, and laughed my face clean off.
I managed to stop cold turkey, but the Mrs struggles, she is fine most of the time, but generally smokes whilst drinking. Anyway in the pub last night we met a guy who had one. I wandered over to have a chat, I was amazed at how defensive he got when I bought it up, fortunately he saw in a few seconds that I wasn't going to 'have a pop' and we had a good chat about them. He had been using them for about 6 months and hasn't wanted a real smoke in that time. Mrs Bear ordered one today, when it arrives i will let you know how she gets on. I'm optimistic though that in enough time it will help her to stop, but for the minute she will save money and hopefully get a bit healthier. It was a jacvapour by the way.
A colleague at work moved onto one about a year ago, although no longer smoking cigarettes he still uses the electronic one daily. PS, the vapour does give of a "not so nice" odour
