This is a story that I find myself very interested in because I have a vested interest on both sides of this coin. As a long time heavy smoker I recently decided it was time for me to quit. after serious research into all the products out there that purported to help smokers quit I finally came across one that did…it helped me quit in hours not days or months.

The product I discovered was an Electronic Cigarette. There are many brands of e- cigarettes and they come in many shapes and sizes but they all utilize the same technology. The e- cigarette is commonly comprised of 3 parts: a battery, an atomizer and a cartridge that holds nicotine suspended in propylene glycol. The battery heats the atomizer which in turn vaporizes the propylene glycol which in turn delivers the nicotine into the lungs and produces a nice vapor that makes it look like you are smoking.

It doesn’t take long to realize that this device tackles many of the smokers problems in one fell swoop. Obviously the nicotine is a major factor but it also addresses the hand to mouth need and the ever important feel of smoking or action of inhaling and exhaling a vapor.

Unfortunately there are highly uneducated people in the world who happen to be in the pockets of big tobacco because as of this time many countries, including Thailand, are moving to ban e-cigarettes.

Public Health Minister Chaiya Sasomsab ordered a study on information of electronic cigarettes to find measures to prevent importing e-cigarettes to Thailand because existing law doesn’t cover the new product.

The e- cigarette consists of a cartridge, an atomizer, and a rechargeable battery. It doesn’t contain tobacco but it has nicotine, propylene glycol, a chemical used in a fog machine, and fruity taste. Each cartridge is the equivalent of 15 conventional cigarettes.

The public health minister said that although e-cigarettes don’t emit smoke, they pose harm to smokers with the level of nicotine higher than found in conventional cigarettes.

He ordered the Food and Drug Administration to conduct a study of e-cigarettes and to discuss with agencies concerned to draw out preventive measures.

Mr. Chaiya said the target group of this new product is young people as they are eager to try a new thing.

He added that the intake of nicotine is approximately 50 microgrammes for each inhalation. The substance can cause harm to heart and blood vessels.

The level of nicotine in blood as high as 25-50 nanogrammes per millilitre can increase a risk of having Ischemic heart disease

This seems to be the pat answer from related agencies world wide. In America the newly empowered FDA is looking at the e-cigarette the same way now that they are to control tobacco’s future.

The real problem here is the amount of nicotine delivered by the devices. You can buy pre-filled cartiges in strengths ranging from 0 mg of nicotine to 36 mg of nicotine as well as nicotine liquid in the same strengths that the user can fill their own cartridges with. Obviously nicotine does have the downside of contracting vessels and arteries but what exactly is the difference when a smoker of cigarettes can vary the amount of nicotine they receive by smoking more or less and they ingest over 4000 other chemicals along with that nicotine.

The tobacco company giants such as Phillip Morris have seen the future and it is indeed bleak for them. The tobacco giants wrote the bills that President Obama signed into law last week which gives them a leg up with the FDA. You can bet they have been at work world wide to get e-cigarettes banned.

Phillip Morris helps to kill over 400,000 of their best customers every year…the e-cigarette has not been linked to one death much less one illness since it’s introduction to the world in 2004.  Are you starting to see the BIG picture now?

Thailand and other countries are telling the world that these products should be banned because there is no way to regulate nicotine usage. While you could die if you ingested large amounts of nicotine by drinking it, by using a nicotine inhaler, vaporizer, or cigarette the most you could do is overdose on nicotine which is basically feeling dizzy, nauseated, and having a bad headache…looks like beer might have to be banned as well.

Aside from the fact that e-cigarettes are only delivering one chemical, nicotine, they also are helping people to cut down and stop smoking cigarettes which contain known carcinogens. In addition to tar, there is also carbon monoxide, ammonia and arsenic among other chemicals….4000 other chemicals!

Many studies including some sponsored by governments world wide, have shown that nicotine also has it’s upsides such as:

• Nicotine maydelay the onset and effects of both Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.
• Nicotine  may  improve symptoms of attention deficit disorder and also Tourette’s syndrome.
• Nicotine has  been found to influence mood, mental alertness, and addiction.
• Scientists have discovered that nicotine acts on nerve cells to enhance the release of neurotransmitters, chemicals that relay messages within the brain and nicotine increases a person’s ability to focus and pay attention.
• Nicotine is also known to switch on receptors on the surface of cells in certain parts of the brain, causing these neurons to release the Neuro-transmitter dopamine, a chemical that is responsible for feelings of pleasure.

Why don’t we take the potential benefits of Nicotine seriously?

Efforts by the anti smoking lobby to stop smoking, have seen nicotine’s potential benefits not get the recognition they deserve. Nicotine is simply seen as being bad due to its association with smoking, even though it is just one of numerous chemicals contained in a cigarette.

This is really like saying wheat is bad for you as some beers use wheat in the brewing process and people die of alcohol abuse. Of course, wheat in it’s natural state is not the cause of death and we all know that, however we are less open minded on our view of nicotine.

I love Thailand and plan on living there soon enough. I also loved smoking but knew it was time to stop. I now have a device that allows me to enjoy a semblance of smoking and is very satisfying and yet it isn’t killing me. If the big tobacco companies have their way with the governments of the world I will soon enough be a criminal along with all the other e-cigarette users out there. Whether it be Thailand or America I will continue to use my e-cigarette and live to tell my tale.

Below are some videos showing the e-cigarette in action for those of you that have never seen it.