• Fog surrounds e-cigs

    Little is known about safety of 'healthy' smokes
  • Electronic cigarettes — embraced by users as a healthier alternative to smoking or a good way to quit — are picking up steam.
    • email print
    • Millions still smoking

      Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., accounting for more...
      » Read more
      Millions still smoking


      From Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
    There's little research on how safe they might be or whether they're an effective strategy for kicking the habit, but more people are giving e-cigarettes a try every day.
    About one in five adult cigarette smokers in the U.S. had tried electronic cigarettes in 2011, nearly twice as many as in 2010. Sales reached nearly $500 million in 2012 and are expected to double to $1 billion this year. As the market grows, even tobacco companies are jumping on board.
    The battery heats the liquid into a vapor that the user inhales. Instead of smoking, it's come to be called "vaping."
    The liquid is a mixture of propylene glycol (a common chemical used in many food products), vegetable glycerin, flavoring and nicotine. The composition can vary greatly by manufacturer.
    Typical electronic cigarettes range from around $10 for a standard e-cigarette that requires replacement liquid cartridges, to as much as $70 for a polished wooden model that can be refilled.
    But as the market grows, little conclusive research has been done to determine the health effects of inhaling a nicotine-laced vapor.
    Joseph adds that electronic cigarettes may not be all bad for current tobacco users, with a couple of important caveats: Nonsmokers shouldn't start, and e-cigarette consumers should use them only with the goal of quitting.
    There's a lot scientists still don't know. That includes the actual chemical exposure that users receive compared with traditional smokers' intake; the way vaporized nicotine is absorbed by the body; and the effects of secondhand vapor.
    "States and local governments are having to revisit clean indoor air laws, and that's important for a couple reasons," Joseph said. "One, we don't know what they are emitting into the air."
    Also, she worries that use of e-cigarettes will undermine years of antismoking campaigns that have taken cigarettes out of public places.
    "E-cigarette use is growing rapidly," Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the CDC, said in a statement at the time. "There is still a lot we don't know about these products, including whether they will decrease or increase use of traditional cigarettes."
    Katie Forster, who had tried to quit smoking with nicotine gum and patches, recently bought an e-cigarette.
    "I did a lot of research" about the safety, said Forster, 26, of Charlotte, N.C., who works for an accounting firm. "And if I'm picking between a cigarette and an (e-cigarette), it's the lesser of the two evils for me."
    Forster, who said she'll stick with it until she can quit smoking completely, chose a more elaborate device with a rechargeable battery and a refillable liquid cartridge.
    The liquid is available in hundreds of flavors with varying levels of nicotine. It's those flavors, with appealing names such as Mocha Madness, Cotton Candy, Bourbon, Cowboy and Cuban Supreme, that have been a point of contention for some who worry that teenagers may be enticed. And for now, there is no federal restriction on the sale of e-cigarettes to minors.
    But a North Carolina state law prohibiting the sale of electronic cigarettes to minors went into effect recently.
    Unlike smoking, which is banned in North Carolina bars and restaurants, e-cigarettes are allowed at a business owner's discretion. But observers of the bar scene in Charlotte say they aren't too common yet. A statewide trade group for restaurants and hotels says electronic cigarettes haven't been an issue among its members.
    As questions about the safety and regulation of e-cigarettes linger, some North Carolina entrepreneurs are beginning to self-regulate ahead of state and federal agencies.
    Joe Wofford, the owner of Volcano of Raleigh, N.C., an electronic cigarette shop that opened in late 2012, says his average customer is a 40-year-old woman who smoked cigarettes for 20 years before deciding to make the switch. Wofford said his shop, also known as The Puffing Monkey, doesn't sell to anyone younger than 19.
    MadVapes, a manufacturer of electronic cigarettes based in Mooresville, N.C., began as a home office operation in 2009 and has now expanded to fill 30,000 square feet of warehouse space and run four Charlotte-area retail locations.
    "We're trying to be a really responsible company," said Hoogendoorn, 51, of Denver, N.C. "I would personally like to see some sort of regulation on how e-liquid is manufactured."
    MadVapes follows e-liquid production standards set by a volunteer trade organization that aims to "promote safety and responsibility through self-regulation."
    Hoogendoorn said his company periodically sends batches of its e-liquid to a lab in Raleigh for chemical analysis.
    Cindy Armstrong, 57, of Charlotte, smoked for more than 30 years. She tried to quit smoking many times, and had gotten down to about five cigarettes per day, but couldn't give them up completely.
    "I analyzed when I liked to smoke, and I realized that it wasn't the nicotine so much as having the cigarette in my hand," she said.
    When her boyfriend gave her an e-cigarette starter kit for Christmas, she never went back to smoking traditional cigarettes, and now, she only uses a disposable e-cigarette occasionally.
    John Toohey, 45, of Ballantyne, N.C., quit smoking cigarettes within a few weeks of ordering an electronic cigarette.
    Scientists and medical professionals, meanwhile, continue to offer the following caution: Long-term health effects of electronic cigarettes are unknown, and it could be years before consensus is reached about their safety.
    Distributed by MCT Information Services
    Electronic cigarettes feature flavored nicotine vapor instead of smoke. They appeal to smokers who want to kick the habit, but have struggled with gums or patches.
    The current iteration of the e-cigarette is credited to a Chinese pharmacist named Hon Lik, who patented his product in 2003. Researchers urge caution because little is known about the long-term effects, but concede that e-cigarettes may be better for current smokers than traditional cigarettes.
Reader Reaction

    Events Calendar