Pro

Written by: David Lacy

Just when you thought cigarettes were soon to be a thing of the past, companies are now introducing the cigarette of the future.
The electronic cigarette is a newly popular type of cigarette that may not only help change the way smokers quit but could also replace their nicotine patches. Here is the catch: E-cigs are relatively new to the market, and there is still a lot of research that needs to be done before anyone can say that they are a viable in helping to control or even quit smoking.
According to TheLancet.com, e-cigs are used by many smokers to assist in quitting the habit because they can deliver nicotine and mitigate tobacco withdrawal symptoms.
A trial done by a group at The Lancet produced underwhelming evidence. E-cig users did quit smoking, but the results were not nearly as high as one might expect. The article states, “E-cigarettes, with or without nicotine, were modestly effective at helping smokers to quit…Uncertainty exists about the place of e-cigarettes in tobacco control, and more research is urgently needed to clearly establish their overall benefits and harms at both individual and population levels.”
So are e-cigs a better alternative to cigarettes? I think they are. There is not a lot of evidence supporting the theory that they can help people quit, but I have been around people who smoke them. E-cigs seem to be a great alternative for those who enjoy smoking inside or around non-smoking friends since secondhand smoke risks associated with e-cigs are lower than those associated with regular cigarettes.
The idea in theory is great. An odorless cigarette that can be smoked without harm to others sounds fantastic. We may not be at this point just yet, but we are getting there. Personally I hope research proves that e-cigs can help people quit or at least control the urges that many people have to smoke. I have seen many friends try to quit but not be able to because the patch did not work. If this is truly an effective way for smokers and non-smokers to live in harmony, I’m all for it and hope that more research proves that this will benefit people.
Do you feel strongly about electronic cigarette? Is this technology a benefit or a hazard to humanity? Express your opinions by sending the Spectator staff a tweet at @vsuspectator.

Con

Written by: Taylor Stone

Are “tobacco free” cigarettes better for your health? What if that tobacco was replaced with liquid nicotine? Say hello to electronic cigarettes, or “e-cigs.”
Electronic cigarettes are quickly becoming a preferred option among smokers to traditional cigarettes. With such a rapid increase in popularity, questions arise about the safety of these sleek, smokeless, battery-operated alternatives.
You have probably seen people smoking these innovative, ultramodern, “safe” cigarettes in unconventional places such as restaurants and elevators, but what makes these popular substitutes “safer?”
A common myth about electronic cigarettes is that they are a healthier option because they don’t contain tobacco, but the nicotine is still there, only in a different form. Electronic cigarettes contain a mechanism that heats liquid nicotine turning it into a vapor, allowing smokers to inhale and exhale as they would a normal cigarette.
Why do so many people believe that inhaling liquid nicotine will not affect their health? This myth may stem from the fact that e-cigs are readily available to everyone, regardless of age – especially online. It doesn’t help that many electronic cigarettes come in kid-friendly flavors such as gummy bear and cookies cream, leaving little room for debate when it comes to its targeted audience. Since they are tobacco free, electronic cigarettes are not subject to U.S. tobacco laws, which give them a guise of safety.
The FDA is in the process of trying to have e-cigarettes regulated as a “drug-delivery device” but the manufacturers insist that e-cigs are simply recreational and should not be subject to regulation.
The truth is, there simply isn’t enough known about electronic cigarettes to so fervently claim that they are safer than traditional cigarettes simply because the nicotine is being delivered to your lungs in a different way.
A cigarette is a cigarette, regardless of whether you use a lighter or batteries or whether you’re producing smoke or vapor. We shouldn’t question what the “healthier” option is if they are both delivering nicotine, the very component that makes cigarettes addictive, directly to your lungs.
So I guess the real question is, do you want to be addicted to a “traditional” cigarette or an electronic cigarette?