Author: Hendry

The number of products handed out on the NHS to help people quit smoking has plummeted by almost a third.

New figures show there were 169,967 (31.1%) fewer smoking cessation items dispensed in 2014/15 compared to the previous year.

It is the second consecutive year that the figure has fallen since 2006/07.
The total cost of the products was £8,057,216, a drop of £4,169,659 (34.1%) from last year.

Last week separate statistics found that the number of attempts to quit made with the support of NHS smoking cessation services in Scotland has dropped by 39% since 2012.

The report said the rapid rise in the use of electronic cigarettes as an alternative means of quitting was “a plausible explanation”.

The Scottish Household Survey 2014 found that 1 in 20 adults use e-cigarettes and around a third of all current smokers and recent ex-smokers reported using one to help them try to quit.

Public Health Minister Maureen Watt said: “The majority of people accessing these services are from the most deprived communities where smoking rates are highest.

“However, since 2012 there has been a reduction in the number of NHS items prescribed to help people quit smoking.

“This is likely to be the result of a combination of factors, one of which is the increasing use of electronic cigarettes as an alternative aid to stopping smoking.

“While more research is needed, e-cigarettes are almost certainly less harmful than tobacco, and if people are using them as an aid to quit smoking, that is a good thing.

“Anyone using an e-cigarette will have the best chance of quitting tobacco altogether if they seek support from their local NHS stop smoking service.”

Source : http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/13844309.Number_of_products_given_by_NHS_to_help_Scots_quit_smoking_drops_by_almost_a_third/

When Hon Lik, a Chinese pharmacist, invented the electronic cigarette in 2003, his aim was to find a way to stop smoking, first for himself and then, after commercializing the concept, for others.

He had no idea of the chaos that would ensue.

This basic paradox has dogged the device from the start. Increasingly, governments and public health authorities across the globe have wrestled with the question of how to deal with the devices. This debate is now raging across Asia.

In Hong Kong, Malaysia and Macau, decisions are imminent on whether to ban e-cigarettes altogether in the ostensible name of blocking a “gateway” to smoking and protecting youth health in the face of rapidly rising sales.

This is despite evidence from the EU and the U.S., where millions of smokers have successfully switched from smoking to “vaping,” as the use of e-cigarettes is called, and that the devices can be a highly successful aid for people trying to quit smoking.

Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand have bans of varying effectiveness. In Japan, Australia and New Zealand they are “sort of” banned. Some Asia-Pacific countries ban the liquids but not the device; some do the reverse. Others distinguish between e-cigs containing nicotine and those that do not.

Consumers are as confused as authorities.

In a recent opinion poll of adult smokers in six regional markets, conducted by Ipsos on behalf of factasia.org, 75% of respondents said it would be wrong for governments “to prevent or delay legalizing less harmful alternatives to cigarettes for adult smokers.”

Yet governments appear determined to do the opposite of what their citizens want.

This is a shame, given the welter of independent reports in recent months that indicate the legitimization and regulation of e-cigarettes could be nothing less than a lifesaver.

Same risk as coffee

In August, Public Health England, a U.K. government department, said e-cigarettes are “significantly less harmful to health than tobacco and have the potential to help smokers quit smoking.”

The U.K.’s Royal Society for Public Health called for public confusion over nicotine to be addressed as a way of encouraging smokers to use safer forms of the substance, calling nicotine “no more harmful to health than caffeine.”

In August, Dr. Derek Yach, former cabinet director at the World Health Organization and the man largely responsible for drafting its Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which restricts cigarette packaging and marketing globally, called for e-cigarettes to be brought “into the mainstream” and for governments to “end the war on e-cigarettes and view them as the smoking cessation aid that they are.”

Here in Asia, many authorities appear untroubled by facts or the weight of independent opinion from acknowledged experts in harm reduction, even though reducing death and disease associated with smoking is a stated public health aim everywhere.

The anti-smoking lobby has polarized between the hard-line “quit or die” approach of adherents of the WHO and the less punitive approach of a growing chorus of independent experts. In numerous countries, as Yach observed, vested interests supporting cigarette production impede rational consideration of expert testimony.

The main argument from governments seems to be that drafting regulations to ensure safety standards for products and ingredients, as is done with other consumer items, and implementing age-of-sale restrictions would be too difficult and time-consuming.

In the factasia.org survey, 70% of adult smokers said they would consider switching to e-cigarettes if they were legal and met quality and safety standards. Clearly there is demand for a less harmful alternative to smoking.

In July, Dr. Marewa Glover, a New Zealand-based leader of smoking cessation programs, blasted governments such as Singapore and “even our closest neighbor Australia” for “imposing draconian, nonevidence-based bans and restrictive laws and taxes to stop smokers switching to vaping.”

Outright bans are a simplistic, even counterproductive, response to a complex issue. If unrestricted youth access to e-cigarettes is a concern, sales can be restricted to adults. If harmful additives are a concern, governments can regulate the content of the e-cigarette liquids and they can also regulate the devices. Why give up a promising means of getting smokers to switch to something now seen to be “at least 95% safer than cigarettes,” as one medical expert recently put it?

If only Hon Lik had called his invention something else.

Source : http://asia.nikkei.com/magazine/20151015-LOST-IN-A-HAZE/Viewpoints/John-Boley-Smoke-and-mirrors-in-the-debate-over-e-cigarettes

Today, the world’s smokers have plenty of alternatives to choose from when they decide it’s time to kick the tobacco habit. From nicotine patches to gums to prescription drugs, there are endless products promising to help smokers quit. But the best selling alternative to cigarettes has risen to unparalleled levels of success this year. So far, electronic cigarettes have brought in $3.5 billion dollars, when is more than double the sales in 2013 according to Bonnie Herzog of Wells Fargo Securities.

Since 2004, vaping has gradually taken the center stage as a feasible alternative for smokers. Today, it’s common to see people puffing on ecigs all over the country in parks, shopping malls, and even walking down the street. Smokers are flocking to ecigs because they provide a similar experience to smoking a cigarette, but they eliminate tar and tobacco, the deadly combination that leaves thousands of smokers suffering from cancer. Plus ecigs release no secondhand smoke so vapers don’t have to worry about putting their loved ones at risk.

According to NewsWatch, ecigs are a winning solution and that is why they are currently the leading choice for smokers who want to quit. Washington DC resident Alexandria Kapitanskaya said ecigs helped her finally give up her cigarette habit. “I managed to get rid of my nicotine habit through vaping,” she said. “I used to consume half pack per day. But now, vaping only serves as my hobby.”

Alexandria explained that ecigs not only reduce her health risk, but they also save her quite a bit of money in the long run. “It offers me great savings. In fact, I only spend about $15 a month for vaping,” she said.

Greg Conley, President of the American Vaping Association, said that ecigarettes are rapidly evolving and the industry growth is evident in the number of smokers that have successfully walked away from nicotine addiction. “(The) majority of people who tried using e-cigarettes did this out of curiosity and this applies for both smokers and non-smokers,” Conley said. “Consumer awareness is encouraged in every vaping product plus vaping technology has been innovated over the years.”

All things considered, ecigarettes seem to be a massive success, especially among American smokers. With a proven track record to help people quit, it’s really not so surprising to see that ecigs are topping the sales charts for cigarette alternatives.

Did you choose ecigs as an alternative to smoking? Was it hard for you to make the switch?

Source : Churnmag

In 2015, electronic cigarette industry boomed to $3.5 billion dollars. This means it has doubled since last 2013 which is only $1.7 billion; a statistics provided by Bonnie Herzon of Wells Fargo Securities senior tobacco and beverage analyst.

Electronic cigarettes were introduced to the public in 2004. And since then, it has made its own name and reputation. Vaping is a common thing for people who want to quit smoking. However, even curious nonsmokers have significant contribution to the growth of this industry.

Vaping or using e-cigarette is done through inhalation of water vapor. It creates the vapor as its battery heats the liquid, turning it to an inhalable vapor. The difference of this from a traditional cigarette is that it does not create a secondhand smoke. And the use of flavored liquids and nicotine will not make the user feel high unless one is using marijuana infused liquids.

“I managed to get rid of my nicotine habit through vaping”, Alexandria Kapitanskaya from Washington D.C. said.  “I used to consume half pack per day. But now, vaping only serves as my hobby”, she added.

Today, Alexandria invites friends over to vape. And she find this a healthful alternative to smoking, doesn’t make them cough with absence of smell. “With a glass of wine and e-cigarette, we always have fun times”, she added.

Vaporizers costs $50-$200. And if you are lucky to find the best deal, you may end up buying the best vaporizers at very favorable prices. “It offers me great savings. In fact, I only spend $15 a month for vaping”, Alexandria declared.

“Majority of people who tried using e-cigarette did this out of curiosity, and this applies for both smokers and non-smokers”, Greg Conley, the President of American Vaping Association said.

“Consumer awareness are encouraged in every vaping product plus vaping technology has been innovated over these years”, he added.

Erik Miller from Washington D.C. took vaping more seriously by creating a shop that hosts book signing and movie nights where anyone can socialize and vape.

There are small businesses who want to invest on vape liquids and vaporizers. However, FDA regulatory law on cigarettes and tobacco stand in their way of doing business since application and approval of such industry comes with a cost that they can’t afford.

However, previous smokers patronize what’s available in the market. And they do this not to give in to their crave for nicotine but just to have fun with their friends.

Lack of research is one of the biggest myths we hear from e-cigarette critics. Many people assume that e-cigs have not been studied in detail because the research is not heavily published by the main stream media. However, there have already been many clinical trials and research projects conducted that found promising results for e-cigarettes. Here is a look at some of the most important studies we have seen to date.

1) Secondhand Vapor Contains Nicotine, But No Combustible Toxins

The Oxford Journal published a study in December 2013 where scientists looked at what toxins might be in secondhand vapor. They found that e-cigs have no combustion related toxins present in the vapor and only a small amount of nicotine was found in secondhand vapor. Researchers concluded that more studies were needed to determine if there was any risk involved with secondhand nicotine exposure.

2) E-Cigs Do Not Stiffen the Arteries

The Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center in Greece compared the impact of e-cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes on heart function. The researchers discovered that smoking even two tobacco cigarettes will cause the aorta to stiffen, but e-cigarettes caused no difference to the aorta and no stiffening of the arteries.

3) Flavored E-Liquids Help Smokers Stop Using Tobacco

Dr. Konstantino Farsalinos headed up a study to determine whether flavored e-liquids had any impact on the success rate of smokers seeking to quit. He concluded that e-liquid flavoring “are important contributors in reducing or eliminating smoking consumption.”

4) Smoking Kills, and So Might E-Cig Regulation

Dr. Gilbert Ross, medical and executive director of the American Council on Science and Health offered a comprehensive report on e-cigarettes, concluding that e-cigarettes are much healthier than tobacco cigarettes according to common sense. He suggested that regulating e-cigs could be a deadly decision for public health.

5) E-Cigs Are Effective for Smoking Cessation and Prevent Relapse

Researchers at the University of Auckland and the University of Geneva studied the impact of e-cigarettes on former smokers. They concluded that e-cigs could prevent former smokers from relapsing into tobacco use and they could effectively help current smokers quit.

6) E-Cigs Are Not a Gateway to Tobacco Use Among Teens

Dr. Ted Wagener from the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center studied the impact of e-cigarette use on 1,300 college students. He discovered that only one person that first used nicotine in the form of e-cigs went on to start smoking tobacco cigarettes. He concluded that e-cigs were not a gateway to tobacco use.

7) E-Liquid Has No Adverse Effects on Heart Health

The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health published a study on how e-liquids impact heart cells. After testing 20 different e-liquids, the researchers concluded that vapor had no adverse effect on cardiac cells.

8) E-Cig Use Has No Impact on the Oxygenation of the Heart

Dr. Konstantino Farsalinos studied how e-cig use impacted oxygenation of the heart. He concluded that vaping had no impact on oxygen supply and coronary circulation. These findings were revealed at the European Society of Cardiology Annual Congress in Amsterdam in 2013.

9) E-Liquids Pose No Concerns for Public Health

Professor Igor Burstyn of Drexel University School of Public Health studied e-liquids to determine if the chemicals in e-liquid could be dangerous. He refuted all the most widespread health concerns about e-liquids (P.s. Thanks Reddit!).

10) Health Improves After Smokers Switch to E-Cigarettes

Independent university researchers conducted a study to find out whether switching to e-cigs had any influence on health. They concluded that 91 percent of smokers that switched to electronic cigarettes had notably improved health. They also noted that 97 percent had reduced or completely eliminated chronic coughs.

11) E-Cigs Reduce Risk of Tobacco-Related Death

Boston University of Public Health conducted a study to see how e-cigarettes impacted mortality risks related to tobacco. Researchers concluded, “Electronic cigarettes are a much safer alternative to tobacco.”

12) Electronic Cigarettes Are Effective for Smoking Cessation

The University of Catania conducted a study to learn whether e-cigs would be effective as smoking cessation devices. After six months, nearly 25 percent of participants had quit smoking completely. Over 50 percent had cut cigarette use in half.

13) E-Cigs Cause No Major Respiratory Impact

Researchers compared first and second hand impacts of exposure to e-cigarette vapor to learn how it would impact respiratory function. The result was that secondhand exposure to tobacco smoke was more damaging to lung function than first hand exposure to vapor from e-cigarettes. They concluded that e-cigs cause no acute respiratory impact.

14) Second Hand Exposure to E-Cig Vapor Poses No Risks

In a French study, researchers found that e-cig vapor dissipated within 11 seconds on average. In contrast, cigarette smoke lingered for an average of 20 minutes. They concluded that secondhand exposure to e-cig vapor causes no public risk.

These studies are just the beginning. Every month, we find out about new studies all over the world to discover the true impact of electronic cigarettes. So far, research clearly shows that e-cigarettes are a better alternative to tobacco use. What are other studies that you hope to see in the future?

Source : http://www.churnmag.com/features/14-electronic-cigarette-studies-that-shame-the-critics/

Electronic cigarette veterans are fighting hard to ensure that the ecig industry succeeds. Unfortunately, some rookie vapers have no idea how to use an ecig without offending everyone around them. If you don’t follow some basic rules of ecig etiquette, you will end up making all vapers look like idiots. Don’t give e-cigs a bad rap! Here are nine ways you could potentially damage the vaping movement and what you should do to avoid them.

1. You Treat Your E-Cig Like a Fog Machine

When it comes to ecig vapor, bigger isn’t always better. As electronic cigarette technology advances, we have seen a lot of vapers go crazy with over the top mods. Rookie vapers view the huge vapor clouds as the ultimate ecig experience and they can’t wait to explore the powerful atomizers that create monster clouds. However, the average non-smoker is going to be super annoyed if you are constantly blowing out massive waves of vapor. Don’t treat your e-cig like a fog machine. Use it responsibly and consider how other people might feel when you are vaping in public.

2. You Vape in the Movie Theater

Nothing is more annoying that paying to watch a movie and finding yourself behind an inconsiderate ecig user. Even if nonsmokers are okay with vaping, they will be extremely frustrated when you vapor clouds block the view of the big screen. Plus that small light on the tip of your e-cig will be really noticeable and distracting to other movie watchers once the lights dim. If you must take a vape break at the theater, step out to the lobby or go outside.

3. You Get Called Down for Vaping at Your Kid’s School

When you go for parent teacher conferences or PTA meetings, refuse the urge to pull out your ecig and take a puff, even if things get stressful. Schools have a strict no smoking policy and even though your e-cig is technically smoke-free, it still projects a bad image to children. Vaping on school premises is a recipe for disaster and it’s the kind of dangerous behavior that will get e-cigs totally banned from public areas in your city.

4. You Fake a Bathroom Break and Vape on the Toilet

This is actually a pretty common thing for new e-cig users. When you get that nicotine craving, you don’t want to draw attention by vaping in the office or in front of your family so you duck into the bathroom and vape while you pretend to do your business. There are a couple of problems with this. First of all, if you are in a public restroom and people walk in, they could be alarmed by the huge cloud of vapor hanging in the air. Second, you might raise suspicions when you end up visiting the bathroom way more than usual. Eventually people will catch on. If you need to use your e-cig, just step into another room or walk outside.

5. You Vape Indoors and Smoke Outdoors

When you first start using electronic cigarettes, dual-use is pretty common. As you are making the transition from smoking to vaping, you might slip up and smoke a cigarette once in awhile. That’s totally normal. However, it’s really not a good idea to make a habit of using both e-cigs and cigarettes. Some people end up vaping nonstop indoors and then anytime they walk outside or get in the car, they smoke instead. If you do this, please stop. It gives the appearance that you cannot go for five minutes without nicotine. It makes e-cigarettes look bad and it causes people to think that e-cigs are making nicotine addiction worse instead of better. It’s counterproductive and it really hurts the vaping industry, so please stop.

6. You Are Condescending and Rude to Smokers

Don’t act like you are better than smokers. Remember that you used to be just like them and just because you made the switch to e-cigarettes, you are not superior. While you might passionately disagree with their choice to continue using tobacco, you won’t convert anyone to e-cigs by talking down to them. A little kindness can go a long way in showing people that e-cigs are a good alternative.

7. You Act Like an Ecig Evangelist

It’s awesome that you are pumped about vaping, but don’t act like a walking billboard for your favorite brand. You will quickly become annoying and everyone will avoid you. Feel free to tell your friends about your choice to vape when they ask about it. Share information and be prepared to back your claims with research. However, don’t go over the top and treat your ecig habit like a political campaign. There is no need to constantly bash smokers on social media or to hound your friends night and day to try e-cigs.

8. You Leave E-Cig Cartridges Everywhere

Your family will quickly be annoyed if they find your old e-cig cartridges lying around all over the house. Throw them away when you are done and don’t expect others to clean up after you. Remember that the cartridges contain nicotine and even old cartridges can pose a risk to pets and children. Don’t leave your vaping gear lying around or you could risk a deadly accident.

9. You Blow Vapor in Someone’s Face

Please – for the love of all that is good and tobacco-free – do NOT blow your e-cig vapor in someone’s face. This is giving electronic cigarettes such a bad reputation. We’ve seen it on social media on more than one occasion. People are venting about inconsiderate e-cig users that puff on their ecigs and then blow the vapor right at the person they are talking to. Even though the vapor isn’t dangerous like secondhand smoke, it is still offensive when someone blows it straight in your face. Turn your head and exhale in the other direction so you don’t offend people around you.

What are some other things that ecig users do that make us all look bad? Are there any other etiquette tips that new vapers should know?

Source : Chunmag

As the World Health Organization works towards stricter regulation of electronic cigarettes, a group of 53 scientists have joined together to send an open letter in defense of e-cigs. The letter was addressed to the WHO Director Margaret Chan and signed by some of the world’s leading scientists from North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. The scientists urged the WHO not to regulate ecigs as tobacco products, warning that it could have disastrous global health consequences in the long run.

After officials from the WHO discussed electronic cigarette at a meeting last year, documents were leaked showing plans to classify ecigs as tobacco products under the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. As the leaked documents made their way around the world, many scientists and medical experts had growing concerns that the WHO might act prematurely and do significant damage to the fight against smoking-related disease.

In response, the scientists wrote an official letter expressing their concerns and urging the WHO to consider the ramifications. “These products could be among the most significant health innovations of the 21^st century – perhaps saving hundreds of millions of lives. The urge to control and suppress them as tobacco products should be resisted,” the letter said.

If ecigs are classified as tobacco products by the WHO, many countries would feel pressure to raise taxes, ban advertisements, or restrict ecig use in public venues. All of these measures would ultimately hurt the ecig industry and detract current smokers from switching to ecigs as a harm reduction strategy.

Scientists are not the only ones that back electronic cigarettes. Surprisingly, the tobacco companies are also standing with ecigs, perhaps because the biggest cigarette makers have already launched their own lines of ecigarettes in an order to offset falling profits as smoking rates decline. Kingsley Wheaton from British American Tobacco told Reuters that classifying e-cigs as tobacco would make it more difficult for smokers to find a favorable alternative to cigarettes.

In response to the letter, the WHO’s Tobacco Free Initiative program manager Arumando Peruga said that no final decisions have been made regarding electronic cigarettes. The topic of ecig regulations will be considered again at a Moscow meeting in October 2014. “At this point the only thing I can say is that we are elaborating these regulations and they will soon be available to you,” said Peruga.

The world’s scientists do not plan to let ecigs go down without a fight. Gerry Stimson, emeritus professor at the Imperial College London helped organize this week’s open letter. He told Reuters that the WHO was taking a “bizarre” approach to ecigs and were treating the products with harsher intents than regulating agencies in the United Sates and Europe. “We want to make sufficient noise now before things get too set in stone,” he explained.

For now, we will have to wait and see how the WHO will handle this issue in October. It’s a positive sign that so many medical experts and scientists are taking a proactive approach to electronic cigarettes. The scientific community has the most likely chances of successfully bringing victory to the ecig industry. Even regulators cannot argue with research and scientific evidence. Hopefully, these experts will continue to back their ecig defense with additional studies that offer an educated look at the impact of vaping.

Do you think the WHO will change their current stance on ecigs or are we doomed to see our favorite vaping products regulated as tobacco products worldwide?

Source : chunmag

Lou Rebello of Swansea used to smoke three packs of cigarettes per day. He lost his mother to lung cancer, and said he tried to quit smoking using all sorts of methods, including prescription Chantix, but couldn’t kick the habit. Three years ago, a friend handed him an electronic cigarette. “I never smoked a cigarette again,” Rebello said.

He began his transition using 18 mg of nicotine in his e-cigarette, the equivalent of regular tobacco. He’s down to 3 mg of nicotine and said he could go to zero, but enjoys the little kick.

“Overall, I feel healthier,” Rebello said. “I don’t wheeze when I lie down. I don’t get out of breath walking up the stairs.”

Despite the experience of Rebello and others, the American Lung Association and American Cancer Society have concerns about the safety of electronic cigarettes. The United Kingdom says they’re 95 percent safer than conventional cigarettes and can help people quit smoking. Some 13 countries have banned e-cigarettes.

Health and government officials world wide can’t quite seem to agree on whether e-cigarettes are more or less harmful than tobacco, or on how to regulate or tax the devices.

While the U.S. Food and Drug Administration prepares to set first-ever regulations, users of these stylish and shiny nicotine delivery devices tout their effectiveness in helping people quit or cut down on regular cigarettes.

Electronic cigarettes come in many sizes. They all contain a battery that heats a liquid, often called “juice,” and emits a vapor, not smoke.

The juice is produced by extracting nicotine from tobacco, and can be purchased with zero to 18 mg of nicotine, and sometimes higher for certain devices. It is made in a huge variety of flavors — some that mimic traditional tobacco taste to every fruity and sweet concoction that can be imagined.

The liquid contains artificial flavoring, as well as propylene glycol (used in food, drugs and cosmetics and to make fog at rock concerts) and glycerin (also found in food and drugs).

The effect on inhaling the vapor into lungs long term is not known.

After working in construction all his life, Rebello took a chunk of savings and opened GoodFella Vapor, 147 Swansea Mall Drive in Swansea a year and a half ago. He opened a second store in Attleboro at the end of September to quench the growing thirst for electronic cigarettes.

“I made this mine because I believe in it,” Rebello said. “I enjoy this. I enjoy helping people.”

A customer purchasing juice at GoodFella Friday afternoon overheard the conversation and said vaping helped him stop smoking, too.

“I had my last cigarette driving to this place a year ago,” said Jason, a Fall River resident who declined to use his last name. “I was so sick of it, sick of spending the money. I can’t stand the smell of (cigarettes) now. I think it’s gross.”

Jason also started with 18 mg of nicotine and now uses 3 mg. “The ultimate goal is to get to zero,” Rebello said. The experience at GoodFella is not unique.

At the E-Cig Barn, 1348 Pleasant St., Fall River, both salespeople and a customer said they quit smoking traditional cigarettes because of electronic cigarettes.

“I smoked for 10 years,” said Darrell Palmer, 26, as he vaped a mod (a large boxy form of electronic cigarette) behind the counter at the Barn. “Two years ago I switched. I breathe better.”

Gage Decotis, 22, starting smoking traditional cigarettes when he was 8 years old. All the men in his family smoked, he explained. Two years ago when he was smoking three packs a day, he decided to switch to e-cigarettes to improve his health.

“I see more people vaping than smoking now,” Decotis said.

Clerk Derek Botelho said he “tried everything” to quit smoking but “nothing worked for me” until he went from smoking to vaping.

Both shops sell a huge variety of flavored juices to enhance the vaping experience. At the Barn, an apple flavor was ready for the season, along with many more like thin mint and nectar of the gods.

At GoodFella, which has a mafia theme, users can purchase the flavor of Bada Bing (berries and black cherry) or hitman (spiced chocolate). Strawberry custard is the current top seller.

When asked if these flavors are made to appeal to kids, heads wagged back and forth. Both stores said they card and never sell to anyone under age 18.

“As an adult you don’t feel you should have something sugary and sweet tasting?,” Palmer questioned. Rebello said he likes Apple Jacks cereal, so why not have similar flavors in his e-juice.

What the FDA might impose in new regulations is a concern to vape shop owners, and those who use the nicotine delivery devices. “I honestly believe vaping should be treated as something other than cigarettes,” Palmer said.

Rebello said government and big pharmaceutical companies want to see electronic cigarettes taxed the same way as e-cigarettes, not for consumer health reasons but for money.

“The state wants to classify us as tobacco,” Rebello said. “We’re 100 percent against tobacco. Ultimately, I’m here to get you off this.”

Source : Heraldnews