‘E-cigarettes do more harm’

A recent study indicated that electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), touted as a safer substitute for cigarettes, could turn out to be a remedy worse than the disease and end up damaging the lungs.
Researchers from the University of Athens, Greece, aimed to investigate the short-term effects of using ‘e-cigs’ on a mixed group, including people without any known health problems and smokers with and without existing lung conditions.
The study included people who had never smoked and 24 smokers, 11 with normal lung function and 13 people with either Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) or asthma, according to an Athens statement.
Each person used an electronic cigarette for 10 minutes. The researchers then measured their airway resistance using a number of tests, including a spirometry test.
The results showed that for all people included in the study, the e-cigs caused an immediate increase in airway resistance, lasting for 10 minutes. In healthy subjects (never smokers) there was a statistically significant increase in airway resistance from a mean average of 182 percent to 206 percent.
One out of every three cancer- related deaths is caused due to tobacco products. Smoking causes more deaths than any other recreational drugs put together. Despite knowing fully the hazardous effects of smoking, smokers simply don’t have the will power to quit. There are various smoking cessation methods that help smokers quit including nicotine patches, gums and even e-cigarettes- where the underlying principle is to give addicts the nicotine “kick” without the harmful carcinogens found in tobacco.
The electronic cigarette industry is growing. According to a recent survey conducted by the Wells Fargo Securities Tobacco Talk, the electronic cigarette industry which was once viewed as a passing fad, has grown to around $300 million in revenue at retail. While electronic cigarette companies are still waiting for regulation from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), some industry experts project that this figure could grow to more than $1 billion over the next few years.
E cigs, that are widely available in stores and online- are fast catching up as the most popular alternative to traditional cigarettes. Ever wondered who invented them? What is in the cigarette? Are they safe?
The primitive concept of e cigs can be traced to an idea by Herbert A Gilbert, who in 1963 patented a device which was described as “A smokeless non tobacco cigarette… by replacing burning tobacco and paper with heated, moist, flavored air.”
What we know of today as the modern e cigs was first devised in 2004 by a Chinese pharmacist, Hon Lik. He came up with the idea of using piezoelectric ultrasound emitting element to vaporize a pressurized jet of liquid containing nicotine diluted in a propylene glycol solution, a solvent used in food coloring.
This design produces a smoke-like vapor that can be inhaled and provide an effective vehicle for nicotine delivery into the bloodstream via the lungs. He also proposed to use propylene glycol to dilute nicotine in a free base form. The nicotine liquid is placed into a disposable plastic cartridge which serves as a liquid reservoir and mouthpiece. These inventions have laid the basic elements of the present day e cigs.
Electronic cigarettes all share three essential components in general- (Nicotine) Cartridge, Atomizer and power supply. Cartridge serves a mouthpiece and usually doubles as a small reservoir holding the liquid nicotine (that is to be vaporized) and propylene glycol. Atomizer, situated in the middle, serves as the heating element responsible for vaporizing the liquid in the cartridge. The vapor resembles smoke. And lastly for the power supply, e- cigarettes have lithium-ion rechargeable battery that powers heating element, airflow sensor and timed cutoff switch to prevent overheating.
To date, there are currently 2.5 million e-cigarette users, a figure that is expected to continue to rise considering the past and future projection. Since being introduced to the U.S. in 2007, the e-cig market has been growing at a triple-digit rate. Looking ahead, the Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association expects the market to quadruple by the middle of 2014.
E cigarette proponents and marketers typically describe the devise as a means to help smokers break their addictions to tobacco.
World Health Organization, in response to the e-cigarette marketers who claimed WHO views it as a legitimate nicotine replacement therapy like nicotine gum, lozenges and patches, in September 2008 stated "no rigorous, peer-reviewed studies have been conducted showing that the electronic cigarette is a safe and effective nicotine replacement therapy. However WHO does not discount the possibility that the electronic cigarette could be useful as a smoking cessation aid.”
United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) too does not approve the use of e-cigs. According to its 2009 study, known carcinogens were detected into the nicotine-cartridges and there were also concerns it could be marketed to younger people.
There are several studies currently in progress on the effects of nicotine vapor both inhaled directly and second hand. However lack of studies on any possible long term health effects caused by e-cigs and due to the absence of tobacco content, e-cigs aren’t subject to U.S. tobacco laws, which mean they can be purchased without proof of age, especially online.
Because e- cigarettes are not regulated, marketers in this relatively new and growing space are benefiting from looser FDA restrictions and are boosting budgets to target their core consumer market which is 30-to-55-year-old smokers along with adding a whole new segment –‘youth smokers.’
Since e-cigs neither produce smoke nor actively utilize fire, they have made their way around the no smoking policy. Instead, marketers use this very policy to promote e-cigs in cities where smoking is banned in outdoor spaces. Marketing veteran Jeffrey Hill, for a leading e-cig company, has gone one step further by selling in bulk to corporations in cities (where smoking in office areas is banned). His pitch-employees who work in tall buildings lose an average 15% of daily efficiency going outside to smoke. The findings are based on his own study.
Further, e-cigarettes are not limited like tobacco companies as to where they can advertise. And with the advent of social media, marketers and PR companies are finding it lot easier to reach out to a wider audience.
They are getting creative in consumer-marketing approach by heightening their online focus with a direct- sales model that incentivizes consumers to promote the brand via outlets such as Facebook and earn commission on sales. Unable to market using search tools from Google, Bing or Yahoo because of anti-tobacco policies are no deterrent for e-cigpromoters; instead they are investing in peer to peer marketing, thanks to online forums, blogs, and other social media platforms.
Promoters are targeting the non-smokers by communicating product’s attributes, such as having U.S. ingredients, which they think could be a huge selling point from the safety perspective.