If it took off in time it would it would remove the need for a whole section of the health professionals. Self interest always comes before public safety.

We’ve have the Nicorette inhaler for while over here in the UK. Its truly unpleasant – a little like inhaling cat litter.

So on top of everything they would have to admit they backed the wrong horse so to speak.

That was an awesome, informative comment you left there. Thank you for taking the time to write that.

If you don’t mind I might put that up on the front page of the blog so that visitors to the site don’t miss it.

It’s correct that antifreeze doesn’t use diethylene glycol but rather ethylene glycol, which is a related but different chemical. (Any layperson could confuse the two, but then the FDA shouldn’t be laypeople on such issues.) Now that doesn’t mean DEG is harmless, in fact when it’s been used in cough syrup it’s because it’s been mistaken for glycerine during manufacturing, and it’s commonly (and genuinely) held that many people have died as a consequence of such mixups, by acute DEG poisoning.

What the FDA should have done is what they’ve done in all other cases of detecting “large” amounts of DEG in consumer products: bar the specific seller from selling any related products until they’ve documented that they are and will continue to be free of DEG. Fines might possibly be in order as well, along with other measures to enforce quality control. But this all relates to the specific supplier, not to the whole class of product. The FDA hasn’t issued a public warning against brushing your teeth even though dodgy chinese toothpastes have been found to contain DEG. Instead, the FDA warns against those specific imports.

Nitrosamines are almost certainly undesirable, but the only thing that matters in this context is quantity. Lots of fruits and vegetables contain nitrosamines, as do many products that have been specifically approved by the FDA, such as nicotine chewing gum and Nicorette inhalers. The key thing is that, like with electronic cigarettes, all these products contain only tiny little trace amounts of nitrosamines, too little to make any difference at all.

As for nicotine products marketed to children, well, the FDA specifically approved cherry-flavored nicotine lozenges. That’s candy. With nicotine. How much more “aimed at children” can a nicotine product be than if it takes the form of candy?

The overall absolute safety of e-cigarettes is well-documented, and reports are still coming in from scientific studies around the world that all give them a green light (as does the FDA study itself, if you look past the press release). The fact that they’re safer than real cigarettes is well beyond ANY doubt at this time. There’s absolutely no doubt that the FDA have lost the health argument.

But they are still the FDA, and they have the full backing of all their sponsors in the pharmaceutical industry plus a lot of “health organisations” who are also funded by the very same companies that stand to lose so much revenue if people should really begin to cure their own tobacco dependencies with e-cigs. So while the science is clear, it may still all come down to politics. And that’s really what we who are against cancer and heart disease need to worry about. US politicians and public servants have proven many times that the lives and freedoms of American citizens are not a primary concern to them at all. Money is always a priority.

Sure it’s about the money! What is life anyway? How shallow! 45 million American smokers of cigarettes and holding. Why aren’t affordable e cigs available at the grocery store?

Thanks for stopping by and leaving the direct link to your great e cigarette article.