Electronic Cigarettes as Harm Reduction Devices: University Research Report

Electronic Cigarettes as Harm Reduction Devices: A University Research Report

Why is there so much debate about the efficacy of electronic cigarettes?  Is it not obvious that e cigarettes are much safer than regular tobacco cigarette?  Even with positive reports regarding e cigarettes, governmental and anti-smoking organizations continue with their attacks on electronic cigarettes.   Nobody says they are great for your health, just a lot better than cigarettes and hopefully on your way to quitting all together.  With true advanced electronic cigarette where you can refill with e liquid of your choice, the nicotine level can now be controlled by the user.  Then it becomes a matter of weaning yourself off the nicotine by reducing nicotine levels slowly.  Although many passed published reports indicate that cold hard love or also known as cold turkey was the only effective methods, recent published reports indicate that weaning one’s self from addiction was just as effective.  Warm love or motivational encouragements tend to work better and with much less resistance and anxiety.

There is an article posted at Harvard.edu regarding electronic cigarette and analyze it from the perspective as a choice harm reduction, a view point not often taken by governmental or anti-smoking organizations.  The report analyzes data from a variety of sources, including the infamously poorly conducted analysis report by FDA.  They researchers also took into account pharmaceutical products for smoking cessation and comparing all levels of nitrosamines in the products and compare it to nitrosamines found in e liquid for e cigarettes.

The thorough research report published in the Journal of Public Health Policy and posted here at Harvard.edu (http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/centers-institutes/population-development/files/article.jphp.pdf) also analyzes the effectiveness of electronic cigarettes as a way to quit smoking and many other interesting reports.  Since the introduction of electronic cigarettes and the subsequent attacks by groups that should embrace the technology that have published opinions against e cigarettes, electronic cigarettes are starting to gain legitimacy.  People are starting to recognize the hollowness of anti-ecig groups’ attacks on e cigarettes as their own self-preservation.  They have not served their stated purposes and have not advanced the debate beyond its initial stage.  The research report should put any doubts about e smokes to an end.