Psychology Today Says E-Cigs Could Help Millions Quit Smoking Psychology Today Says E-Cigs Could Help Millions Quit Smoking

A recent article from Psychology Today highlighted electronic cigarettes and pointed out their potential benefits for smokers who want to kick the habit. The article was written by well-known psychologist Seth Meyers, who wrote about his personal journey to give up tobacco with the help of e-cigarettes. Meyers has been featured on The Doctors, Dr. Drew, Fox News, and Good Morning America and he was courageous to publicly share his own battle to give up the cigarette habit.

Meyers told readers that he had been a smoker for twenty years before he first tried electronic cigarettes. With a little time to adjust to his new e-cig, he was able to stop smoking completely and he hopes other smokers can do the same. Meyers explained that e-cigs are an effective tool for smokers who need help giving up their old smokes and he believes the rapid advancement of e-cig technology could help millions of smokers quit.

So what is the secret that makes the e-cig so effective? According to Meyers, it’s all about how you use it. “One benefit of the electronic cigarette is that it provides oral gratification in that one can repeatedly suck on it, while other cessation measures (medication, nicotine patch, or even nicotine gum) do not provide the same oral gratification.”

Today’s smokers have easy access to e-cigs. They are available at most local drug stores and a variety of service stations throughout the country. Meyers wrote that e-cigs could even become more popular than tobacco cigarettes eventually because there is such a good variety of e-cig flavors and nicotine strengths that are easily accessible.

Unfortunately, the new article did include a few flaws. First, Meyers wrote that there had not been adequate research to determine long-term effects of e-cig use. This is a common myth that seems to crop up repeatedly, but it’s completely untrue. There have already been more than 40 studies involving electronic cigarettes are more are planned for the near future.

Meyers also made a few misguided remarks about the possibility that e-cigarettes could become a dangerous trend among teens. While there is no denying that nicotine is not a good choice for young people, it does seem counterproductive to downplay e-cigarettes because teenagers use them.

Isn’t it better for young people to choose the e-cig as a tobacco-free option if they are going to use nicotine products? It certainly seems like the less dangerous choice than tobacco cigarettes that contain more than 4,000 toxins in each cigarette.

Overall, Meyers painted e-cigarettes in a positive light by sharing how he used them to give up his serious smoking habit. Hopefully, the article will spark further debate and cause more smokers to consider the benefits of choosing e-cigs as an alternative to their usual pack of smokes.

Did you agree with Meyers’ statements about electronic cigarettes? Is this new article a step in the right direction for e-cigs or just another opportunity for the media to publish inadequate research information?


Katie Bercham - CocktailNerd Editor
