Electronic Cigarettes: A Healthier Alternative

Abstract An electronic cigarette (e-cig or e-cigarette), personal vaporizer (PV) or electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) is a battery-powered vaporizer that simulates the feeling of smoking. The user breathes in an aerosol, commonly referred to as vapor, rather than cigarette smoke. Limited evidence suggests e-cigarettes are safer than traditional cigarettes. People who do not already smoke can become addicted to them (Barrington-Trimis, Samet, McConnell, 2014). While Electronic Cigarettes do not contain as many chemicals as regular cigarettes and the nicotine is only a small amount compared to a pack, electronic cigarettes still prove to be dangerous just as regular cigarettes.

(“Electronic Cigarettes vs.,”) There are many alternatives to smoking, for example there is chewing tobacco, patches or even gum. None of them will give the smoker the smoking sensation. Electronic cigarettes are a reasonable alternative for smoking tobacco cigarettes because they offer, fewer health risks, they cost less, and have shown to help some smokers quit. When individuals smoke a cigarette, their lungs fill with carcinogens, which can cause cancer. Electronic cigarettes provide smokers with their nicotine fix, without getting all the harmful ingredients that regular tobacco cigarettes contain.

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Teens smoke and experience tobacco everyday. Every year the death rate from smoking increases, and people have health issues. Teens are always experimenting with tobacco, and it is hard to prevent it. Most adults who regularly smoke started at a young age, and have health problems. Young smoking can create health problems in the future, like lung cancer.

The parallel here is that; the packaging, distribution and sale of marijuana cigarettes-much like tobacco, could generate considerable revenue. Many studies have concluded that the carcinogens present in cigarettes far exceed that of marijuana. So, from a health standpoint- marijuana is less harmful than already-legal cigarettes. Furthermore, to dictate or infringe upon individual choice is an infringement on personal freedom. “It is not worthwhile for a law to forbid people from willingly exposing their own bodies to harm by using drugs, any more than by overeating or bungee-jumping.

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