In an effort to help me quit smoking my dad bought me a starter kit of e-cigarettes and said he would pay for me to use this device to knock out my nasty cigarette habit. I decided to give this a try. It sounds great in theory, a vapor mist that contains nicotine but not any of the other carcinogens in cigarettes. Perfect! Well, me being me, I decided to do some digging and what I found spooks me almost as much as the risks of smoking in it’s regular form. First of all, I found out that the e-cigarette concept came from China. This is a country that felt it was acceptable to use lead paint on children’s toys, knowing that kids have a tendency to put things in their mouths. So we are clearly off to a bad start. Next I found that there is very little definitive information about what the vapor I’m inhaling is. At least with my Camels I know my risks and have a decent idea of the toxins I’m putting in my body. The thing that finally pushed me over the edge was the fact that the FDA is trying desperately to get these things banned. I know plenty of people are going to say that this is due to pressure from tobacco companies but let’s think about this logic for a moment. I do not remember any instance of nicotine patches or gum being lobbied against by the FDA. I never once heard the FDA say Nicorette should be pulled from the shelves or stopping shipments from crossing the border. The FDA has also done the much appreciated job of letting me know that one of the mystery substances in the vapor I have been inhaling, in an effort to kick my potentially cancer causing habit, is no other than diethylene glycol. This is one of the compounds that makes up antifreeze, as the FDA kindly points out. Upon further looking I also found that this “dangerous” ingredient is used in smoke machines and (get this) FDA approved medicinal inhalers. So now the very devices designed to help me improve my health could, possibly, kill me faster than the old fashioned cancer sticks. As if there weren’t enough stresses in my life, I now have to worry that every “healthy” decision I make might cause me more damage than my clearly unhealthy ones. I’m afraid of the e-cigarettes so I’m setting them to the side till I can do a little more research and have decided to attempt to quit the old-fashioned way for now. Hopefully I can kick my smoking habit in that way and not have to worry about rather it’s better to die from settling for nicotine vapor or enjoying the cigarettes that I’ve smoked for 18 years.
