Electronic Cigarettes / Vaping - Battery-Powered Vaporizers That Emulate Cigarettes and Deliver Nicotine

[Al Dente]

I shamefully admit I've been a smoker off and on since I was 20 or so. About 18 months ago I did a little research on eCigs and thought I'd give it a try.

First off, I didn't get one of those cheap ones that you can pick up at a 7-11. I bought a well-reviewed eCig starter kit and that kicked off a series of upgrades to the hardware I now use (Kanger Aerotank with a 20 watt eLeaf battery). The current setup costs about $70. I also found a shop (Velvet Cloud) that sold 100% vegetable glycol-based eLiquid with flavors I really like. They're even organic!

I went for a while smoking a few real cigarettes each day and relying on the eCig to get my fix the rest of the day. Over the course of a month, I switched over and haven't looked back. I no longer smell (like cigarettes anyway), I actually enjoy the flavor, it costs much less than cigarettes, there are no butts and ash, and I feel much better physically. I can also take a "stealth" hit from time to time in the office and no one notices. When I have bummed a smoke, I couldn't even finish it because the taste just seemed so bad.

I'm not trying to sell anything here, but eCigs have been in the news quite a bit over the past year or so. The industry is booming with more and more people trying it out. Most of the articles I've read are quite critical of it all with doctor's saying there are no long term studies showing what the possible effects are of vaping. I'm not saying the media and medical community shouldn't be skeptical, but on the face of it, how can this possibly be nearly as dangerous as smoking cigarettes? Yes, I'm inhaling nicotine, but there is no tar and none of the thousands of other chemicals found in a cigarette.

I don't plan on vaping for the rest of my life. The nicotine level I use now is half what it was and I'll continue to reduce it until I hit zero.

Anyway, what are your thoughts? Does anyone else vape?

[DonRocks]

I shamefully admit I've been a smoker off and on since I was 20 or so. About 18 months ago I did a little research on eCigs and thought I'd give it a try.

Anyway, what are your thoughts? Does anyone else vape?

There's no shame in smoking - my father smoked for 50 years (after *decades* of trying, he was finally able to quit, and that's something I'll always respect him for). Quitting was *so hard* for him, and he failed so often, that I saw firsthand just how difficult it is - thus, I have enormous sympathy for smokers, and enormous admiration for ex-smokers. There's no moral judgment involved in this, not unless you're completely ignorant to the realities of quitting. I also suspect vaping is a really good transition for those wanting to quit, and it's a *lot* easier to ween yourself from e-cigarettes than regular cigarettes (surely there are studies coming out that support this).

Anyway, I don't smoke or vape, but a good friend told me that the high-dollar "vaping" equipment makes a night-and-day difference, distancing itself from the 7-11 e-cigarettes by a light year.

The reason I'm posting is because I went into a specialty vaping store (see this post), and I was amazed at the options that were there - the industry is *really* taking this seriously, and the fact that this store was right off Tobacco Road (that, and the fact that the tobacco companies are peddling their Cancer Sticks overseas (*), and that they're hedging by divesting into other industries) should tell you that the writing is on the wall: I look at vaping as similar to buying a hybrid car - it's nearly impossible to break away from gasoline in our economy, just as it's incredibly difficult to quit smoking, so buying a hybrid/vaping is the best option we currently have.

Have you been into a specialty shop? It is, to say the least, impressive.

(*) In terms of moral judgment, I lied, but not entirely - I have genuine empathy for smokers; I think tobacco companies are guilty of murder, and that they killed my father. He couldn't "quit" any more than a heroin addict could "quit," and it's truly a testament to his fortitude that he managed to step down, and finally step away, after *fifty years*. Yes, the long-term damage had been done, but he quit before it had fully manifested itself.

Sorry - this turned into more of a preachy post than I had anticipated. My point was *supposed* to be just how amazingly comprehensive these vaping specialty shops are, and if there was one of them in desolate Kinston, NC, there must be hundreds if not thousands of them throughout the state.

"Makers of Marlboro Laying Off Workers To Invest in More Vaping" by Matt Novak on gizmodo.com

I think it would be the most beautiful thing in the world if tobacco companies became fully invested in vaping, and then the FDA decided to make e-cigarettes available only by prescription. I'm not saying it would be "right," but boy it would sure be poetic justice at its finest.