E-Cigarettes : Health and Safety Issues :

No tar, no nicotine ... And yet, the electronic cigarette, whose sales are exploding, not unanimous. The health minister has called for an investigation, and there are voices calling for the support of a product that is not subject to any sanitary control.

E-Cigarettes May Not Be As Safe As You Think :

Have you ever seen a non-smoker make vapoter? With flowering shops highlighting the "pleasure of hobble," it is quite possible that people who had never had the urge to smoke ... go at it for the taste of mango, or because c is social, cheap, fun.

The electronic cigarette is invading our daily lives. Not a week goes by without a new store opens. We're talking about 500,000 users.

But this new product, which is not clear whether the store as a drug or drugs, serious questions, as evidenced by this hesitation in opening the file Parisien on Monday: "Mirage or Miracle? "

1- It is not a substitute nicotinic, and yet ...

The electronic cigarette, whatever people say, is used as a substitute to smoking tobacco. Very often, a smoker who had stopped going to feel that he will not resume if it goes to the electronic cigarette.

Or if it was a nicotine substitute such as patches or other gums, the electronic cigarette should have filed an application for authorization to market the drug agency. Not being a "health product", the electronic cigarette is beyond any health coaching.

"It can not be sold in pharmacies," says the drug agency in its opinion in May 2011 Notice that it is "not updated since because our position has not changed," the agency said.

The e-cigarette could be a substitute if the solution of liquid refill had "a higher concentration of nicotine than or equal to 20 mg / ml", but this is not the case of most models sold in France.

So there is little, as shown by a survey of Street Press in April, pharmacies, who have not received formal ban selling, saying that "this is not a serious offense" and "at worst, we are recalling the product."

And even if the drug agency said it has not received disturbing escalation, there are voices like that of Chantal Jouanno, Senator IDUs in Paris to demand an investigation into the contents of these devices. "If one wants to die, it is necessary that we know why," she let go.

Some countries like Brazil, Israel and Singapore have banned it and the EU hesitates.

Actual clinical studies showing the effectiveness or not in smoking cessation are needed. The first major is expected next year. In France, the only one available - was conducted by the County Committee of respiratory diseases department of Dordogne. It included only 74 people and produces mixed results: 11% of participants quit smoking completely, although 72% say they have dropped sharply.

E-Cigarettes May Not Be As Safe As You Think :

2 - It is not harmless, and yet ...

With their fragrances from around the world and their lack of reference to any health effect, shopping for vapoteurs resemble mobile-phone stores: one buys the main object and accessories, refills. The initial investment amounts to EUR one hundred. The purchase is amortized in two weeks for someone who smokes a pack a day.

Computer Rue89, Denis is placed after quitting he was struggling to hold and comes with real benefits in terms of breath and smell. He is aware that "it is less toxic than cigarette even though it's still toxic."

We are at a loss for lack of hindsight, to measure long-term effects. At the conference of the WHO Tobacco Control, a report [PDF] was commissioned about it. Some ten toxic substances have been identified, and "there may be discrepancies between the nicotine content by labeling and actual values." The composition of the liquid inhalers, all made in China, is not subject to any sanitary control.

Failing to prohibit the medical profession agrees that there should be a framework. "This is not a harmless product and there is a doubt about its long-term harm" says Pr. Bertrand Dautzenberg, penumologue the Salpetriere (Paris) in the columns of Paris.

He cited a recent study found that two-thirds of 12-14 year olds who have tried electronic cigarettes are non-smoking. "It can become an initiation to dependence product," warns the pulmonologist.

Small problem: in an interview with the Express, the doctor, also president of the French Office of Tobacco Prevention, admitted: "I have clear links to all manufacturers who offer nicotine replacement therapy. "A conflict of interest does not make the best referee on this issue.