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Issue #6 – It’s been a busy 2018 already with so many articles to read and so many articles to review! It’s March and it’s cold in parts of the country. Do what you can to stay warm! And as always – if you think we’ve missed something, drop us a line on our Submission Page.

Public Health England Busts Vaping Myths
Published: 2018-02-20
The conversation about electronic cigarettes has mainly been polarized between those who are in favor of those devices and those who are opposed to them. This has often made it hard for a neutral person to decide who to believe on the degree of the safety or risk posed by electronic cigarettes. Public Health England (PHE) has now come out to dispel some of the many myths that abound regarding e-cigs. For example, they have explained that it isn’t true that secondhand vapor can harm bystanders. People with respiratory complications, such as asthma, will always react to environmental substances. It is therefore not proper to blame those reactions on e-cigarettes, says PHE. The lengthy blog on this subject is a good read for someone who wants to gather as much e-cig information as possible from a neutral source.

Public Health England Recommends E-Cig Sales in Hospitals
Published: 2018-02-06
Public Health England (PHE), the government agency that boldly stated in 2015 that e-cigs were 95 percent less harmful than traditional cigarettes, has come up with a recommendation that electronic cigarettes should be availed in hospital shops as a way to encourage smokers to use them. They are also concerned that many smokers don’t have accurate information about vaping. For example, many smokers believe that e-cigarettes are as harmful as tobacco cigarettes. PHE is of the view that more healthcare workers should discuss vaping as an option to the 40% of British smokers who have never used an electronic cigarette. The adaptation of this progressive stand in other parts of the world could go a long way towards reducing the deaths linked to smoking combustible cigarettes.

Singapore Vaping Ban Takes Effect
Published: 2018-01-27
It is always good to know what is happening around the world regarding issues that concern you since those events may be a pointer to what could happen in your own backyard. Vapers in the US should therefore be concerned about the direction that electronic cigarette regulations are taking in Singapore. Previously, the country had banned the importation, distribution and sale of electronic cigarettes and other products that resemble tobacco products. On 1st February 2018, a new law took effect banning the use of e-cigs and those other products mentioned earlier. Singapore is taking steps to reduce the number of smokers in its population. It has also embarked on moves to raise the minimum age at which people can buy cigarettes to 21 over several years. For example, the minimum age will be raised to 19 next year (2019), then 20 the next year and finally 21 come 2021. Is it possible for such policy directions to influence events in the US?

Vaping While Driving Could Get You Arrested in the UK
Published: 2018-02-22
Vapers have been warned by the police in the UK that they could be arrested in case an officer deems them to be “driving without due care”. How is this possible in jurisdictions where vaping isn’t illegal? The vapour generated during vaping can obscure the view of the driver. Similarly, holding an e-cigarette can distract the driver mentally and cause him or her to loosen his or her hold on the steering wheel. Media reports across the UK show support for such a warning. While no new rules targeting drivers who vape are in the offing, the police promises to use the existing laws to take action against those whose vaping poses a danger to the drivers themselves and other road users. Is this a sign of what is to come in other countries, such as the US, where vaping is widespread?

FDA Taken to Court Over E-Cig Classification
Published: 2018-01-30
In 2009, congress passed a law granting the FDA powers to regulate all tobacco products. In 2016, the FDA issued the “deeming rule” which categorized electronic cigarettes, e-hookahs and other such products as tobacco products. Consequently, e-cigarettes had restrictions placed upon their adverts and how the products were labelled. Three lawsuits have now been filed in different states of the US challenging that “deeming rule”. The plaintiffs argue that the action was unconstitutional and imposes needless restrictions on businesses, such as vape shops, in the vaping industry. This case is likely to awaken several questions that have always arisen about what e-cigarettes really are. For example, can e-cigs without nicotine be a tobacco product? Does the presence of nicotine automatically make a product to be looked at as a tobacco product given the fact that nicotine can be extracted from other plants and crops, such as potatoes? One needs to follow those lawsuits in Minnesota, Texas and Washington, D.C in order to see how the trajectory of the electronic cigarette industry will be shaped going forward.

Why a Global Regulator Would Be Good for the Vaping Industry
Published: 2018-01-30
Two major issues are emerging regarding electronic cigarettes. First, the big tobacco companies now have major e-cig brands on the market. Could Big Tobacco be using e-cigs as a way to recruit new smokers? Secondly, some quality and safety concerns have been raised about electronic cigarettes. These two issues make a strong case for adequate regulation of the industry. Dr. Tanusree Jain, an academic with keen interest in ethical business conduct, has written a thought-provoking article that suggests that a global transnational private regulatory body would do a good job in ensuring that standards are set and adhered to by the players in the industry. She gives examples of such bodies in the garment and chemical industries. Her ideas are worth serious consideration given the fact that individual governments may take long to come up with the right set of regulations that can protect consumers without stifling the growth of the industry.

Issue #5 – We made it! And so did you – welcome back! There seems to be quite a few new articles written this January, we are doing our best to catch up with some of the old ones as well. If you think we are missing something, let us know on our Submission Page.

Electronic Cigarettes: Should The Term ENDS Be Dropped?
Published: 2016-08-26
Regulators, such as the FDA, often refer to e-cigarettes as “ENDS” (Electronic Nicotine Delivery System). The implication of using that descriptive term is the indirect portrayal of the impression that electronic cigarettes are primarily used to deliver nicotine to the users of the devices. However, research has unearthed findings that bring into question the suitability of that descriptive term. Researchers discovered that about two-thirds of teenagers who vape use the devices to inhale flavors rather than nicotine. Could some of these outcomes also be present among adult vapers?The name/label given to something can often have far-reaching results. For example, some policy leaders advocate for banning “ENDS” adverts or sales as a way to protect teens from nicotine exposure/addiction. Changing the label attached to these devices could trigger a more objective view that can result in the formulation of helpful policies, such as how quality issues can be addressed. Otherwise, electronic cigarettes may fall prey to the proverbial “give a dog a bad name and hang him” mentality.

Why You Should Go Slow On Flavored Electronic Cigarette Liquids
Published: 2016-11-10
Did you know that you could increase the percentage to which your electronic cigarette is safer than smoking tobacco cigarettes? Researchers went out to find out the proportion of potential carcinogens and other hazardous substances in electronic cigarette liquids. The findings revealed that the flavorings in those liquids created a bigger number of hazardous substances, such as formaldehyde, when the e-liquid was heated and vaporized. The concentration of the hazardous substances depended on the quantity of flavorings in the liquids. The liquids without flavorings had low levels of those toxic substances during the study. It would therefore be a smart move for you to reduce your consumption of flavored e-cig liquids so that you can lower your exposure to those potentially harmful substances.

Concerns explode over new health risks from vaping
Published: 2017-04-25
Vaping seems to have a detrimental effect in the gums, mouths and throats of teen vapers. The hotter the e-liquid becomes when inhaled, the worse the irritation caused by vaping seems to get, causing mouth sores and inflamed throats that take longer to heal. It is not clear, however, if they might have the same effect on lungs, impairing the healing process. But it is worrying to note young vapers have reported suffering from chronic bronchitis in larger numbers than non-vapers. The youth of most of the people who take part in the study is what concern researchers the most, because some seem to be showing similar conditions to smokers while the popularity of vaping skyrockets among teenagers.

Authorities Need to Disseminate More Electronic Cigarette Information
Published: 2018-01-05
Electronic cigarettes are relatively new on the market. Consequently, many people are still uncertain about whether these devices are helpful or not. Most information on the subject has largely been from the marketing efforts (online and offline) of those who manufacture or sell e-cigs. The lack of regulations governing the marketing of these products has left consumers to rely on any information availed by the suppliers/manufacturers of e-cigarettes. Some of that information may be incomplete or inaccurate, but the consumer has no way of telling the difference. A recent study has highlighted the need for authorities to come up with regulatory guidelines on the marketing of e-cigs so that public misinformation can be avoided. The researchers also recommend that governments take a more active role in educating consumers so that they can make informed choices about electronic cigarettes.

New Oregon Law Raises Tobacco Use Age
Published: 2018-01-15
An Oregon law that was signed last year took effect on 1st January, 2018 raising the minimum age at which people are allowed to buy any tobacco inhalant product, such as cigarettes and electronic cigarettes. The 34-page document now requires retailers to post notices stipulating that no one who is below 21-years of age is allowed to buy a tobacco product. Various institutions, such as schools, colleges/universities and correctional facilities must also post notices to that effect in addition to setting up policies and systems to enforce that restriction. This action by the state of Oregon increases the number of states that have taken such action to five. The measure now leaves vapers and smokers who were within the previous legal limit (18years and over) in a dilemma regarding how they will move forward.

Panel Concludes Vaping Could Be Addictive and a Smoking Gateway
Published: 2018-01-23
A panel of public health professionals taken from across the US issued a report that concluded that vaping e-liquids containing nicotine could be addictive and may increase the likelihood that teenagers who use e-cigs can later start smoking traditional cigarettes. However, the devil is always in the details. The report of the panel admits that it wasn’t clear whether vaping simply created a need to try tobacco cigarettes or it fueled an urge to smoke. What isn’t strange is that people who vape can get addicted. Nicotine is addictive, so anyone consuming it is likely to get addicted at some point. The panel pointed out some gaps that called for further research, such as the long-term health effects of vaping. Their findings confirmed what has always been stated that vaping is safer than smoking traditional cigarettes. What remains to be seen is how the FDA will use the findings of this panel as it formulates policies and regulations affecting the vaping community.

Issue #4 – Happy New Year! We’re in our 4th issue and we found a few older articles out there that talk about some studies which point to vaping be a way for smokers to quit. If you have a decent article that would like to share with our readers, please use our new Submission Page.

Vaping Is Beneficial to Respiratory Disease Sufferers
Published: 2017-11-20
In the past, general statements have been made about how using electronic cigarettes could be beneficial to people who smoke combustible cigarettes. Details are now emerging about how specific groups of smokers can benefit from e-cigs. One such group is the people with chronic obstructive respiratory disease (COPD) and those with asthma. Speaking at Massey University in New Zealand, Professor Polosa revealed that his research has established that sufferers of those two conditions have had the adverse effects of smoking gradually reversed. He therefore finds it unacceptable that some health authorities still maintain a hostile stance towards electronic cigarettes. As more information filters in about vaping, it is becoming increasingly clear that nearly every smoker can have his or her health improve by switching to e-cigarettes.

Swapping Electronic Cigarettes for Tobacco Cigarettes Can Save Millions
Published: 2017-10-02
Tobacco control groups have for long suggested that effective strategies should be found to end tobacco use once and for all. However, it has been hard to agree on a single strategy that can deliver the desired outcomes quickly. Scientists have now developed a model that projects what would happen in case smokers switched to vaping over a 10-year duration. Don’t rush to dismiss their findings as mere guesswork. The study or model used statistics from numerous government departments in the US regarding the rates at which people take up smoking, the quit rates, the rates of those who never quit smoking and those whose life ends due to smoking-related conditions.The outcomes paint a detailed picture of how much harm or death would be prevented if the optimistic projection is real, and what would happen if the worse-case scenario occurs regarding switching to vaping. Both scenarios show that millions of lives would still be saved and people would have a better quality of life when you consider the public health implications of switching to vaping (fewer hospitalizations due to secondhand smoke, for example). The study is worth reading if you are concerned about the policy direction that e-cig and tobacco regulation is taking.

Study Confirms Vaping Can Help Smokers Quit
Published: 2013-11-22
The debate on whether electronic cigarettes can help someone to stop smoking tobacco cigarettes is often polarized between those who are strongly in favor and those against that claim. Rational observers are often left undecided because none of the parties to the argument presents any convincing scientific proof. A study published by Dr. Christopher Bullen and others has provided some scientific proof that can now put this debate in perspective. The aim of the study was to establish whether e-cigs do a better job of assisting smokers to quit when compared to the use of nicotine patches. The study that was conducted in Auckland, New Zealand found that there was no difference in the success rates (measured by abstinence from smoking) between those who used e-cigarettes and those who used nicotine patches in an attempt to quit smoking. This research therefore provides verifiable proof that vaping can help individuals to quit smoking.

Secondhand Vaping Could Be Harmful
Published: 2017-06-01
How safe are the individuals who are close to someone who is vaping? This question goes straight to the heart of the debate regarding the extent to which vaping is safer than smoking combustible cigarettes. Research has shown that the vapor that escapes into the atmosphere while someone is using an electronic cigarette doesn’t contain any combustion toxicants. However, the study found that people who were near the person vaping were exposed to some nicotine in the vapor. This is particularly noticeable indoors. The implication of these findings is that vulnerable people, such as the elderly and young children, need to be protected from this secondhand exposure to nicotine. Vapers should therefore take precautions when they are vaping indoors. Additional research also needs to be conducted about the possible impacts of that secondhand exposure to nicotine.

Scrutinize Your Electronic Liquid Concentration Carefully
Published: 2015-02-01
Consumers of products, including e-liquid, tend to trust the labels that they see on the products that they buy. However, a study published in Nicotine and Tobacco Research by Barbara Davis and others in 2015 shows that many of the labels indicating the concentration of nicotine in electronic liquids are inaccurate. As high as 46 products out of the 50 products sampled were found to have higher levels of nicotine when compared to the claim on the label. This study serves as an eye-opener to all vapers to be very careful when they are buying their e-liquid. Buying from reputable suppliers can go a long way in ensuring that you are buying the nicotine concentrations that you wish to consume. Going an extra mile to find out what quality assurance processes are followed by the manufacturers of the e-fluid that you consume can help to weed out suppliers who may give misleading information about their products..

English Stop Smoking Services Friendlier to Electronic Cigarettes
Published: 2016-02-15
While the debate is still raging in many jurisdictions about the appropriateness of e-cigarette use as a stop-smoking device, the National Centre for Smoking Cessation and Training in the UK produced a briefing for stop smoking services. That briefing outlines several things that service providers need to do in order to support any individual who wishes to use electronic cigarettes as a way to cut back or stop smoking tobacco cigarettes. For example, the practitioners at those centers are advised to refrain from trying to push their clients to quit vaping as well in the shortest time possible. The practitioners are also cautioned to speak positively about e-cigs so that their clients don’t get the impression that it is bad to vape. Such guidelines are helpful because they increase the options that are available to people who hadn’t registered any success with the other smoke cessation products that are available, such as NRT. The briefing also provides a middle ground between those who believe that e-cigarettes can help someone to stop smoking and those who aren’t convinced as yet.