Electronic cigarettes are a "Gateway to class A drugs", REALLY?!?!

I really thought, as I finished editing my last blog post in response to Rachael Lloyd, that it would be my one and only attack on the negative media surrounding e-cigarettes.
The scaremongering would continue, of course, but nothing would rile me as much as that article. 

How wrong was I. 

This time, a pair of articles literally had me smoking at the ears, or maybe I should now be vaping at the ears. In case you've missed them, they are:

http://time.com/3265187/e-cigarettes-gateway-drug/ 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2742362/E-cigarettes-act-gateway-harmful-illegal-drugs-raising-risk-addiction.html

 To be fair, one of these is from The Daily Mail, well versed in creating panic and jumping on the bandwagon, but still. The basic premise of both articles is that vaping can lead to Class A drug use. Yep, you heard it here first... Vape, and next thing you know you'll be snorting coke in a toilet or shooting up with heroin in an alley.

It's on a par with saying that all coffee drinkers are going to switch to cocaine to keep them awake; all paracetamol users are going to take morphine to ease a headache and all children who use Pritt sticks are going to end up sniffing glue in a park. It's just NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!

I cannot begin to understand the ridiculousness of these articles. Based on a study of MICE, scientists are claiming that using nicotine can lead to users needing harder, stronger drugs to satisfy the pleasure centres of their brains. The main point of this is clearly flawed. Mice are not like human beings in this instance. Humans have free will, and morals, and the general understanding that drugs such as cocaine are dangerous, highly addictive, expensive and can cause seriously unattractive single-nostril damage.

Mice are, well, mice. They are essentially the wenches of the scientific world, doing the bidding of drug-pushing scientists. Of course they are going to want to satisfy their pleasure centres more - what else are they going to do stuck in a cage? Fair enough, their brain chemistry may well work in the same way as ours but under no circumstances does this mean that the behaviour pattern will be the same because we have something the mice lack - common sense.

If nicotine led to Class A addiction, then surely all those people who smoked for forty years BEFORE making the switch to an electronic cigarette must already have a well established habit? Surely the article needs to mention those who continue to have a 60 a day smoking habit, who haven't discovered the joy of vaping, and the dangers they must be in? My grandmother smoked... She was addicted to nicotine... But she didn't drink and she certainly didn't have a fondness for ketamine!

It is a well known fact that e-cigarettes provide less nicotine than smoking in the same time frame, therefore suggesting that in actual fact we are less likely to find ourselves 'craving' a bigger hit.

Finally, I think the whole premise of the article is flawed. In the Daily Mail, it quotes that 'one drug alters the brain's circuitry in a way that enhances the effects of a subsequent drug, referring to nicotine enhancing the effects of stronger drugs. Fair play, this may be the case. But, fundamentally, unless we have tried such drugs we, as nicotine users, won't know.

It borders on hilarity that the assumption seems to be that nicotine users crave harder drugs. We don't. We're not rodents. So, Time and the Daily Mail, stop treating us like vermin. Our pleasure centres are just fine, thank you!

Many customers have told us that it’s much easier to control vaping than it is to control smoking analogs. It seems vaping is less addictive than smoking. But why is this? And can you really use vaping in a bid to control using nicotine?

We think you can. And our customers experience suggests that e-cigarettes may be a more effective form of nicotine replacement than patches and gum.

E-Juice Ingredients

When comparing analogs and e-cigarettes, it’s important to remember that tobacco and nicotine are not the same thing.

Tobacco contains thousands of dangerous or deadly substances, such as tar and formaldehyde, and some people believe these form the addiction.

E-cigarettes can deliver a replacement nicotine hit (although it’s possible to vape without nicotine as well). Unlike analogs, e-cigarettes do not contain all the other dangerous substances found in tobacco smoke.  So overall, vapers feel that e-cigarettes are safer, based on the ingredients and current evidence.

Can Vaping Cause Addiction?

Some articles have claimed that vaping is a ‘gateway’ to tobacco use, and analog cigarette addiction.

However, evidence suggests that few people move from vaping to analogs. It’s normally the other way round.

A large American survey claimed that adolescent users of e-cigarettes may be more likely to use cigarettes as well. However, this doesn’t mean e-cigarettes lead to smoking. It’s also important to note that the survey has been criticised and may have been reported incorrectly.

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) says that a “negligible” amount of non-smokers vape. It says less than 1 per cent of smokers have tried an e-cigarette, and almost none continue to vape after the first few vapes.

What About Children?

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) wanted to find out of e-cigarettes really do encourage children to smoke.

It has three important findings:

• In March 2014, 84 per cent of 11-18 year olds had heard of e-cigarettes
• 8 per cent of this age group had tried one
• Children using e-cigarettes are likely to be smokers already

ASH says there is “almost no evidence” of use among children who have never smoked.

Reports continue to surface suggesting that children are using e-cigarettes widely, or that e-cigarettes are getting kids addicted to analogs. However, the ASH survey is one of the most cited and trustworthy on the subject.

Using Nicotine

Nicotine is a drug, and we recommend that all e-juice and e-cigarettes are kept out of the reach of children.

That said, we believe that it’s safer than the chemicals in analogs, and most users feel healthier when vaping compared to smoking. Nicotine may also be helpful toprevent Alzheimer’s – although that’s not a reason to start smoking.

Scientists believe that nicotine is not actually very addictive on its own without tobacco and some state on a par with caffeine.

For more information about addiction and nicotine, speak to your doctor for advice.

Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigs as they are sometimes referred to, have become increasingly popular among smokers. People were looking for an alternative to smoking that was both safer and more enjoyable. Nicotine patches worked for some but they were more of a treatment to nicotine addiction rather than an alternative. Plus they were an acquired taste so not everyone was able to adjust accordingly.

Then came electronic cigarettes which changed everything. They were graciously received among the smoking community and hundreds of thousands of people were able to make a successful transition from smoking regular cigarettes to smoking electronic ones. In today’s post we will highlight some of the reasons why this change in choice came about so quickly and successfully.

Safer than Traditional Smokes

The hallmark feature of electronic cigarettes is that they are a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes. Study after study has shown that e-cigs do not carry the same adverse effects regular smoking does. It doesn’t carry the carcinogenic additives present in regular cigarettes. They have lesser amount of nicotine which added with flavours more than makes up for the loss. This works wonders for smokers who don’t want to quit smoking but wish to have a safer alternative to supplement their nicotine intake.

Slowly Become Less Dependent on Nicotine

Given the different strengths of E-liquid available users can effectively control how much nicotine they inhale. It’s a great way to effectively quit smoking altogether without having the cravings that would otherwise make this a very difficult prospect. Going cold turkey on any habit is extremely difficult. The only way to effectively quit smoking (if that is what someone wants) is to slowly reduce the intake and keep reducing it till they are no longer dependant on it. E-cigs allow people to have that option. Some people will feel the loss of nicotine initially but the many types of flavours of e-cigs entice the brain into adjust itself to it.

Dozens of Flavours Available

Unlike regular smokes which mainly come in one or at most two flavours, there are literally dozens upon dozens of flavours for electronic cigarettes. You name it, there is a flavour for it. Strawberry, Chocolate, Menthol, practically any flavour one can think of is likely to be readily available. This opens up new possibilities for smokers who in addition to their nicotine want to enjoy specific flavours. For the first time ever, smokers can customise what they inhale as they see fit. This was something that was never possible before.

Very Cheap and Affordable

One would think there would be a catch somewhere because e-cigs sound too good to be true. Ultimately it is the price that determines whether or not the product would be feasible for people. E-cigs score high on this front as well. Instead of purchasing a pack every day, an electronic cigarette lasts for years. So if one were to compare the costs of the two side by side, e-cigs would win by a considerable margin. An E-cig starter kit which has everything in it including the e-liquid and Clearomiser, costs less than £20.