ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES: GOOD OR BAD?

WHAT IS IT?

• Electronic device invented to deliver nicotine through the lungs
• Structure: a chamber filled with a nicotine"juice", heating element, and a mouthpiece

OVERVIEW

• Invented in 2003 by a Chinese pharmacist and smoker looking for a "safer" alternative to traditional tobacco cigarettes.
• Product didn't become popular until around 2009, when electronic cigarettes really took off.
• 466 brands producing

HEALTH RISKS

• Users claim they're safer alternative to real cigarettes (no tobacco/carcinogens).
• Ecigs still contain nicotine, and are extremely addictive
• By no means are ecigs considered healthy because they still contain some carcinogens

HEALTH RISKS

• Ecig vapor is proven to inflame lungs and damage proteins
• Heavy users can show the same symptoms of real tobacco use such as a smoker's cough
• Scientists argue that if kids use ecigs at early ages, they can easily get hooked on nicotine and move up to real cigarettes. (Gateway drug in a sense.)

THE SHADY SIDE OF ECIGS

• Ecigs are NOT regulated by the FDA
• Electronic cigarettes, being relatively new products have hindered the ability to study long-term effects
• Obviously we don't know that they are in fact safer than cigarettes , even though it may seem like they are

QUITTING SMOKING

• Many swear that ecigs helped them quit smoking, by decreasing their nicotine intake and cutting off tobacco intake
• However, health experts urge those who wish to quit smoking to do so by using methods like nicotine gum or a nicotine patch