Brobdingnagian Lumberhulks

E-Cigs now regulated by FDA as tobacco products. Will this mean that flavors and prices are regulated? Almost certainly.

Throughout my life, I generally have felt that there is no way to meaningfully combat the government or special interest groups like big tobacco, big pharma, big oil, etc. This is because humans are inherently flawed and avaricious. Those who desire to wield power should never be allowed to possess it. Yet they do, and have unlimited resources and finances to pursue whatever ends they choose. And so my mentality has been to carve out a life, keep my head down, and not allow their eyes to fall upon me.

But with this issue, I feel energy coursing through me to do something about it. I was never able to quit smoking, not with any of the available replacements. Not with the gum, the patch, or hypnosis. Not with auricular therapy, cold turkey, or Chantix. Many of you no doubt feel the same. Some of you may even be smoking and wondering what in the hell the electronic cigarette is. With this device I have not smoked in over a month and it was not even difficult. I can already breathe better and I feel better than I have in quite some time. I am secure in the knowledge that propylene glycol was deemed safe in the 40′s and that I am no longer inhaling thousands of carcinogens present in regular cigarettes.

Unfortunately, sales of various types of electronic cigarette, along with the “juice” that fuels it – a mixture of propylene glycol and/or vegetable glycerin, flavoring, and nicotine have cut into the profit margin of pharmaceutical companies like Pfizer, who market Chantix, tobacco companies who want you to buy their cigarettes, and all manner of companies who sell the nicotine patch, lozenge, and gum. What does this mean for the consumer?

It means that this success must be cut short. How is this being done? Surely, you reason, if people were able to stop smoking by using a safe alternative, no one would block their progress. You would reason incorrectly, then, because the World Health Organization and the FDA are currently battling a leading manufacturer of ecigs in court to outright ban the right to use the electronic cigarette, or to at least regulate it under strict guidelines.

Either way, the ex-smoker loses. Australia and Canada have already banned them. Oregon has banned them. California would have, but Schwarzenegger vetoed the bill. The American Lung Association has released statements that ex-smokers who have quit with the e-cig (a.k.a. personal vaporizer) should go back to smoking. Pfizer contributes millions to the ALA each year. Coincidence?

The arguments are ridiculous. One is based on a flawed study done by the FDA where they found diethylene glycol (a much different molecule than propylene glycol) in one batch of cartridges from China. The health risks are unknown, they say, but potentially horribly dangerous. Interestingly, propylene glycol is in tobacco. The mentality seems to be that smokers should stick with what they know kills them rather than use something that may or may not be dangerous. The other argument is that teenagers will get addicted because there are flavors like grape, bubble gum, and watermelon. And yet there is only data to support that teenagers are still buying regular cigarettes.

One can only assume that these entities, like the FDA and ALA, are not in place to protect citizens, but to profit from them. If heath was their primary concern, they would wholly embrace any possibility which could save lives and meaningfully reduce health care cost from lung disease, heart disease, and cancer.

Until one begins researching all the facts, this essay might seem to be moving far, far to the left, amidst the murky waters of conspiracy theory.

If you smoke, look at the alternative. I’m glad I did. If you already use a personal vaporizer (PV), educate others. If you are not a smoker, think about the benefits for you. Loved ones who smoke can move to a safe alternative. “Vaping” does not smell and will not bother you. The taxes you pay will no longer go towards the multi-trillion dollar industry that funds treating diseases brought on by cigarettes.

Below I have placed some invaluable resources.

General Resources:

• CASAA.org – The Consumer Advocates for Smoke-Free Alternatives Association
  A wonderful source of information regarding the actions being taken for and against the electronic cigarette.
• Tests for the Chronic Toxicity of Propylene Glycol and Triethylene Glycol on Monkey and Rats by Vapor Inhalation and Oral Administration – A research study conducted in the 1940s, in which they placed one group in air heavily concentrated with propylene glycol and one in regular room air.
• Summary of Results – Various research results regarding e-cigarettes and propylene glycol
• E-Cigarette Forum – An e-cigarette forum filled with useful information and populated with experienced, mature users.

 
Reputable Suppliers:

• Vapor4Life – Makers of the VaporKing. They have many delicious juices and fairly nice cartomizers.
• VaporNine – Wonderful “turbo” cartomizers. Good juice.
• Tasty Vapor – Awesome juice. Custom flavors you design.
• NHaler – Makers of the Xhaler, a powerful ecigarette that can run at 6volts!