E-CIGARETTES

 

 

E-cigarettes have exploded onto the market in recent years and there are multi-billion dollar questions swirling around them. Advocates say that they offer a safe and effective smoking cessation aid while opponents are concerned that they may erode the success of decades of tobacco reduction efforts.

 

E-cigarettes have the appearance of tobacco cigarettes and simulate smoking without the combustion.

 

Fluid, made up of mostly vegetable glycerin combined with a range of flavours and sometimes infused with nicotine, fills a metal battery-powered ‘cigarette’ or ‘vaping’ canister. ‘Smoking’ an e-cigarette means inhaling the vapour which is generated.

 

E-cigarettes do not contain many of the carcinogens present in tobacco cigarettes like tar. However, more evidence is needed around long-term health effects of inhaling vapour from heating the mixture of chemicals found in e-cigarette fluids.

 

While there are strong voices for and against e-cigarettes, there is no definitive evidence about the long-term harms of e-cigarettes

 

An additional challenge is that there are many different designs, ingredients and manufacturers of e-cigarettes.

 

This makes the study of the mix of chemicals in e-cigarette liquids and vapours difficult to assess, and the results from one product difficult to generalize to others.

 

Supporters of e-cigarettes argue they are more effective for tobacco smoking cessation than traditional nicotine-replacement products like patches and gum.

 

However, evidence supporting these claims is not well established.

 

A 2013 survey from the United Kingdom suggests that the vast majority of e-cigarette users are current or past smokers, and they are using e-cigarettes to curb or reduce tobacco smoking.

 

While more research is needed about e-cigarettes’ long-term health effects, relationship to tobacco smoking and use for smoking cessation, there is no question that e-cigarette use is growing

 

The global tobacco market is estimated at $800 billion. However industry sees huge potential in e-cigarettes. Herzog’s model suggests that by 2017 the profit margins for e-cigarettes will surpass tobacco for retailers.