The Newest Social Health Crisis!

The scientific community’s awareness of the harms of smoking and its efforts to inform society date back more than 100 years. However, legal recognition of these harms through successful lawsuits against cigarettes and their manufacturers in America came only in the 1990s. Over the past 50 years, nongovernmental organizations in Western countries, particularly America, began fighting smoking. As governments’ efforts to protect the public joined those of these organizations, smoking declined markedly. Smoking-related diseases, particularly cancer, and deaths from these diseases also decreased significantly in Western countries. Yet while the West fought this problem through national unity, underdeveloped and developing countries became captive to tobacco addiction. In our country, the government has launched a campaign over the past 10 years involving serious awareness efforts and legal measures. Although the results have not been especially encouraging, these efforts should not be underestimated and should receive as much public and civil-society support as possible.

The almost global opposition to smoking led by governments and nongovernmental organizations has forced tobacco companies to develop new projects and seemingly more humane methods

The electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) we want to discuss today resembles a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Why is the global tobacco industry embracing a device developed to help people quit smoking so enthusiastically? Is it really a health aid for quitting? Does using it pose health threats? While e-cigarette advocates promise freedom from addiction, are we unknowingly being led toward new addictions? What threat does it pose to our children? Let us explore this frightening reality together through scientific evidence. . .

What Is an Electronic Cigarette?

An electronic cigarette, also called an e-cigarette, is an electronic device that imitates smoking by vaporizing a flavored liquid. It consists of a cartridge containing liquid, a heater and an atomizer. Vaporizing the flavored cartridge liquid imitates smoking. When the heater heats the device, the user inhales as with a normal cigarette. Although e-cigarette contents contain certain heavy metals, they contain no tobacco, but do contain nicotine and flavoring agents.

Although devices vary by manufacturer, electronic cigarettes consist of 3 basic components.

Battery: Newly manufactured e-cigarettes use lithium-ion batteries. When the user draws on the device, the battery activates the atomizer and illuminated tip.

Atomizer: The component between the electronic circuit and the liquid. When it operates, the liquid becomes vapor.

Solution in the Cartridge: Contains mixtures of nicotine, flavorings and chemicals (propylene glycol, glycerin). An LED tip present on some devices also lights up when the user inhales. . .

History of the Electronic Cigarette

First patented in 1963 by Herbert Gilbert, the earliest e-cigarette, was described as a tobacco-free cigarette in which a nicotine solution was heated to produce vapor. This is the first recorded example of the e-cigarette idea, although the product was never manufactured. In 2003, Chinese pharmacist Hon Lik designed and patented the modern e-cigarette to help his father, who had developed lung cancer, stop smoking. It was first sold in China in 2004, entered the European market in 2006 and the United States market in 2007.

In 2008, e-cigarettes attracted the World Health Organization’s (WHO) attention and began causing worldwide concern as a potential health problem. In 2014, they were banned for minors in England and their use was restricted in Chicago. The European Parliament banned e-cigarette advertising and stated that they should carry health warnings and children must be protected. Also in 2014, “Vape” entered the Oxford Dictionary and was named word of the year. By 2016, sales continued rising rapidly despite bans on e-cigarette use and sales in many United States states.

The Striking Increase in E-Cigarette Use

Although public awareness of smoking harms was thought to have increased in America and Europe in recent years, developments concerning e-cigarettes surprised the scientific community. Healthy-living trends entering our lives in the 2000s also opened a new door for alternative tobacco products. Following the invention of the modern e-cigarette in 2003, people began turning to it because it was marketed with the slogan “helps you quit smoking.” Electronic cigarette advertising and marketing strategies quickly influenced not only people aiming to quit smoking but also school-age young people, because the product was legal and appealing.

According to FDA (American Food and Drug Administration) data, in 2015 more than 3 million middle and high school students were current e-cigarette users, with rates of %16 among high school students and %5,3 among middle school students. Between 2011-2015, e-cigarette use rose from %1,5 to %16 among high school students and from %0,6 to %5,3 among middle school students, figures considered striking. In 2013-2014, %81 of current young e-cigarette users cited appealing flavors as their main reason for use.

Do E-Cigarettes Reduce Addiction or Create New Addicts?

Although media reports present e-cigarettes to smokers as a treatment for quitting supported by strong scientific evidence, we see that this is not the reality. Data presented as scientific studies are extremely inadequate, fail to answer the actual question or contain distortions.

To date, respected medical authorities have continued to doubt their ability to help people quit, while their potential dangers have caused concern. Scientific evidence favors the view that they encourage young people in particular to start smoking and do not help existing smokers stop. Studies have also shown that the earlier exposure to nicotine begins, the stronger the resulting addiction.

The similarities between e-cigarette advertising and historical conventional cigarette advertising are astonishing. Such similarities raise the question: Is an electronic cigarette really an innocent device for reducing tobacco use, or, considering that tobacco companies also support it, a second chance for them? This is the question that comes to mind.

What Threats Do E-Cigarettes Pose to Our Health?

• Various articles have demonstrated the potential harm of chemicals in the dissolved liquid to lung tissue ,
• the lining of the mouth and the entire respiratory system. Despite their relatively short period of public use, links with various cancers have also begun to be revealed.
• Among children and young people in America, putting marijuana into e-cigarette cartridges at substantial rates also presents a separate health problem.
• A study whose results were published in 2017 drew attention to in e-cigarettes of the known carcinogen benzene (a substance with a high potential to cause cancer), specifically high levels of benzene in e-cigarettes.
• In addition, an important investigation showing that e-cigarettes are a previously unforeseen risk factor for cardiovascular disease, a study was also published in early 2017.

What Are Our Recommendations Regarding Electronic Cigarettes?

You should not choose electronic cigarettes to quit smoking. Remember that doing so replaces one problem with another, and recognize that all tobacco manufacturers are preparing to sweep the world with electronic cigarettes. The figures above should make clear that electronic cigarettes particularly target our children. Warn e-cigarette users around you and fulfill your responsibility to raise public awareness and protect yourself and your children.