Electronic Cigarettes have now been on the worldwide market for about 6 years and in relative full force on the US market for about 2 years. Many companies are popping up to sell the electronic cigarette to the many smokers in the US. Even though we have our own brand, Instead Electronic Cigarettes, we believe that competition is good.
I mention this as an example of an emerging market in the US. In these times of financial fluctuation it would seem more important than ever to have new and innovative businesses. Before we discuss that, let’s first get this out of the way: The electronic cigarette has not been proven to be safe or an effective smoking cessation device. There was the e-cig study in New Zealand done by Murray Laugesen and some general manufacturers info here and there are currently at least 2 vapor tests being done in the US and to date there have not been any reported side effects from users, but nonetheless there is not enough evidence, according to the FDA, that the e-cigarette is safe or even safer than tobacco cigarettes. Now that we can all agree to move past the “is it safe” question, let’s look at the market.
The tobacco market is vast. For instance “the company [Phillip Morris] sold 235 billion cigarettes in the United States for a profit of $3.3 billion” (from Big Tobacco’s Global Expansion). With the new FDA Tobacco Bill, competition within this huge market may be limited.
In economic terms, the electronic cigarette would be considered a substitute. Some would argue it is a complimentary product to tobacco cigarettes because many smokers use both. However smokers don’t use them at the same time and one doesn’t make the other better. The e-cig is an obvious substitute for a tobacco cigarette.
A product that is an economic substitute to tobacco cigarettes, contains no tobacco, and is sold by small American businesses. Sounds like just what the doctor ordered? Not according to many at the FDA. They believe it should be a pharmaceutical quit smoking device. Why? I am sure the answer is more complicated than this, but the FDA is funded by the Pharmaceutical companies. “More than half of the FDA’s budget is now funded by the pharmaceutical and device companies it is supposed to regulate.” (from Healthcare Reform on About.com)
Why not just do the testing to prove that it is safe? Well, that is not what the FDA wants. They want clinical trials to prove that not only is the e-cig safe, but that is helps people quit smoking. First, I believe the electronic cigarette is too much like smoking to help people quit. Many smokers may move to only using their e-cig, but this is not what a quit smoking product is. For instance, nobody suggests that smokers should continue using nicotine gum for years and years. It is meant to ween smokers off of nicotine until they no longer use cigarettes or nicotine gum.
Second, the clinical trials they want cost millions of dollars and take years to complete. Not only does this mean that the product would be taken out of the hands of those who currently use it, but it would virtually eliminate any small US company from being in the market. Instead, it would be a profit center for large pharmaceutical companies.
Lastly, making electronic cigarettes only available in pharmacies would limit it’s market potential. Products in pharmacies are, for all intensive purposes, not subject to market influences. They have a monopoly. Nicotine gum is expensive. Not to make, not to ship, but to buy. The cost of paying the FDA for the right to sell it is so high that it limits who can sell them. Thus, using nicotine gum is more expensive then smoking. And of course, like any business would do, the pharmaceutical companies do everything they can to keep substitutes off the market. Can you image if someone came out with nicotine gum that was sold in gas stations for $2 a pack? The stuff sold in pharmacies would be sitting on the shelf for a long time.
So why is this bad? The electronic cigarette is the first product ever that has the potential to significantly cut into the tobacco market. Putting it into a pharmacy means a disadvantage. Raising the price of e-cigarettes and drastically limiting where they can be sold will mean less smokers will use it.
Reasonable regulation is necessary and will occur, one way or the other. But having a government agency place restrictions that are so tight and expensive they only allow large corporations to play in the market is just about as Un-American as it gets.
With many public health organizations and certain politicians making claims that electronic cigarettes are marketed to children, we decided to put together some numbers about the demographics of our customers. We do require all buyers to be of legal smoking age in order to purchase an electronic cigarette, but we wanted to answer the question if this product is more appealing to the young or the old.
Dealing with our customers on a regular basis has obviously given us some insight into the demographics of our e-cigarettes. Based on these interactions we are comfortable saying the majority of our customers are older smokers who have been smoking for a least 15 years. These seem to be the individuals who find the electronic cigarette a suitable smoking alternative after having tried to quit smoking with various methods over the years with no success.
But what do the number suggest? Although we are still working to put together the average age and the bell curve, we can easily pick out the mean age of our customers: 45 years old. That’s right, the mean year of birth for our customers is 1964. This was not surprising considering all the anecdotal evidence.
So who should use the electronic cigarette? That’s easy…..legal age smokers who have tried to quit smoking multiple times with no success. That’s it. Kids should not e-smoke. Non-smokers should not e-smoke. Pregnant women should not e-smoke. Anyone with any medical conditions should not e-smoke until they have talked to their doctors about it. Smoking, whether burning tobacco or the electronic cigarette, is an adult activity.
There are many things about e-smoking that are similar to traditional smoking but let’s not forget that it still isn’t actually smoking. Some argue that it is still smoking because the action of smoking is still present and although this is a valid argument, there is still no combustion, just vaporization. Thus, the term “vaping” has been introduced by many e-smokers.
Let’s first look at the similarities.
As mentioned above, electronic cigarettes allow the user to inhale and exhale a smoke like substance. This is important and why many smokers find the electronic cigarette to be a suitable alternative to tobacco. You can see the vapor go in and see it come out. You can even blow “vapor rings”.
Many electronic cigarettes look like traditional tobacco cigarettes. This is not true of all models, but of most. This adds to the smoking sensation and helps many smokers feel more comfortable with the product.
Electronic cigarettes deliver nicotine…..well most do. While it is true that you can easily use an e-cigarette with no nicotine at all, most are sold with nicotine. By the way, here is a pdf of research done on nicotine by M.A. Bozarth,* C.M. Pudiak, & R. KuoLee. Addiction Research Unit, Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo. As a side note, although nicotine is addictive, it has never shown to be cancer causing.
Now the differences.
Electronic cigarettes use vaporization, not combustion. Burning causes a chemical reaction that can produce many known cancer causing agents including tar.
The e-cigarette can be used over and over again. The cartridges are refillable using e-liquid and the battery is rechargeable. This is quite the opposite of a tobacco cigarette which is used up then tossed.
Tobacco cigarettes contain tobacco….obviously. This is not the case with electronic cigarettes. The liquid that is vaporized contains a base of propylene glycol or vegetable glycerin, water, nicotine (optional), and flavoring. Further testing of the vapor is underway to determine other compounds in the liquid and in the vapor.
It is common knowledge that smoking tobacco cigarettes causes cancer and may eventually lead to death. To date and to our knowledge, no cases of e-smoking related cancer have been reported. To date there are zero cases of e-smoking related deaths. Although there are limited studies (right now), if you would like some users opinions, visit the electronic cigarette petition.
Contrary to what many health organizations advocate, smokers do have rights…..they just don’t have the right to harm others. They do have the right to choose an alternative to a product that is sanctioned by the government and known to kill. We encourage any legal age smoker who is thinking to trying an electronic cigarette to do their research, compare the products, and make an informed decision for themselves.
So what is the big deal over electronic cigarettes? Why would any public health organization or quit smoking group be against a product that doesn’t produce smoke? Why would the FDA be so determined to undermine the electronic cigarette’s current success by misleading the public with false conclusions from it’s testing?
It all started when smoking was found to kill people. Then, the pharmaceutical companies found there was money to be made by selling smokers nicotine in hopes to get them off of smoking. These companies were required to get approval from the FDA to market their quit smoking products. Approval means huge sums of money paid to the FDA.
Many public health organizations and quit smoking groups get at least some of their money from pharmaceutical companies. Whether this was the driving factor or it was their hope of less people dieing from smoking, these crusaders against smoking got motivated. Not only did they recommend smokers quit smoking (often by using a pharmaceutical product) they demonized smokers. They did a good job. There is little tolerance in America today for a smoker.
Enter the electronic cigarette. This simple little device threatens to turn the tables of years of hate speech. It is much harder to hate an action of someone else if that actions hurts only the user…..or nobody at all. Some still will, but the ads against e-smoking won’t have the same impact as those against tobacco smoking.
Left unchecked, the electronic cigarette could put a dent in the tobacco market, a dent in the pharmaceutical nicotine market, and give pause to those who feel hate towards smokers. It is obvious the pharmaceutical companies, the tobacco companies, the public health organizations, and the FDA would rather avoid some, if not all, of these outcomes.
This is about a habit and it’s social acceptance. Certain groups want to maintain the status quo. We want a practical alternative to the issue of smoking, which will continue in one form or another for the foreseeable future.
Over the past couple months there have been some opponents of electronic cigarettes coming out publicly and making many false or misleading statements about electronic cigarettes. These nay-sayers often use phrases such as “we just don’t know” to further their agenda against electronic smoking. On the flip side, there are some suppliers and supporters of e-cigarettes making statements that are also not entirely true to promote the product and gain public acceptance of the technology. So, below is an incomplete list of what we do and what we don’t know about electronic cigarettes.
Here’s what we DON’T know about electronic cigarettes:
1) We don’t know that they contain carcinogens. Some e-liquid may, but some may not. The FDA tested it and found that some do, but it wasn’t clear that they were found in the actual vapor. What was clear, was that when it was found, it was in trace levels.
2) We don’t know what the long term effects are of inhaling propylene glycol (or vegetable glycerin) may be. The EPA study on Propylene Glycol states, “A review of the available data has shown propylene glycol and dipropylene glycol to be negative for carcinogenicity in studies conducted up to the testing limit doses established by the Agency; therefore, no further carcinogenic analysis is required.” and “Upon reviewing the available toxicity information, the Agency has concluded that there are no endpoints of concern for oral, dermal, or inhalation exposure to propylene glycol and dipropylene glycol.” With that said, we still can’t say for certain what the long term implications of inhaling propylene glycol are to the user.
3) We don’t know if electronic cigarettes can help someone stop smoking. We have argued many times on this blog that is is actually a poor stop smoking product because it allows the continuation of the smoking habit. It also continues to deliver nicotine which is addictive and one reason smokers keep smoking. Either way, there is no evidence that it is an effective quit smoking product.
4) We don’t know if this is eventually something kids will try. To date, there is no evidence that any kids have tried e-cigarettes especially those who have never smoked. We fully support making electronic cigarettes an adult only product.
Here’s what we DO know about electronic cigarettes:
1) The majority of the vapor produced consists of propylene glycol, glycerin and water. There is also generally some amount of nicotine in the vapor, unless zero nicotine e-liquid is used. This doesn’t mean there is nothing bad in the vapor, it just means that we do know what is in the majority of the vapor. Further testing is under way to find out all the trace elements.
2) There is no smoke produced because there is no combustion.
3) At least some smokers find e-smoking to be a decent alternative to smoking tobacco.
4) Electronic cigarettes have been on the worldwide market for approximately 7 years with no reports of major issues from the users. There have been reports of dry throat, headaches and other minor symptoms. This does not mean that there won’t be reports of more severe issues from users, but it does mean there haven’t been any yet.
5) To our knowledge, tobacco companies DO NOT make or sell any electronic cigarettes on the market. In the United States most are sold by smaller, start up businesses.
6) Burning tobacco is the cause of upwards of 400,000 deaths per year in the United States alone and electronic cigarettes are an alternative to it.
For a limited time, we are once again offering pre-filled electronic cigarette cartridges. The cartridges fit the Instead Electronic Cigarette and come filled with your choice of e-liquid (various nicotine levels in tobacco or menthol flavors). These cartridges, just like the empty electronic cigarette cartridges, can be refilled with e-liquid (once they are used up). Pre-filled cartridges are approximately equivalent to 3 to 5 tobacco cigarettes. Although we still believe the best e-smoking experience is with e-liquid, the pre-filled cartridges are convenient for those on the go.
Another new addition to our product line are the E-Cigarette Car Chargers. This car charger works in conjunction with the small USB charger that comes with every Instead Electronic Cigarette Kit. It converts your car’s cigarette lighter into a USB input to plug in your charger. Another great idea for the e-smoker on the move.
Happy E-Smoking!
We have two competing products: The tobacco cigarette and the electronic cigarette. Both can deliver nicotine and facilitate the habit of smoking. But there are differences. The electronic cigarette is a reusable product. Cartridges can be filled over and over again. Batteries and atomizers last many uses. Obviously this is not the case with tobacco cigarettes. Let’s have a look at the difference in garbage produced between using 300 tobacco cigarettes and using 1 bottle of E-Liquid (approx. equivalent to 300 tobacco cigarettes by puff count):
Please note the e-cigarette cartridges are made of #2 plastic, which is generally recyclable. The glass bottle from e-smoking and the cardboard boxes from the tobacco cigarettes are also recyclable. This image shows the amount of garbage with no recycling, although we encourage everyone to recycle.
It has been a busy few months! Our fight to keep the electronic cigarette from being seen as a quit smoking device by the FDA and anti-smoking groups continues. We have also been working hard to ensure that our supply of American Made E-Liquid is solid so we can provide our customers with better pricing!
Please note that while we may have been able to reduce our pricing on American Made E-Liquid and our Unique Stash Tin Electronic Cigarette Kits, this does not mean that we have cut back on our wonderful customer service! INSTEAD Electronic Cigarettes continues to grow by leaps and bounds as a company and hopes that our continued support of the industry will help the industry achieve it’s rightful place in the United States free market system.
Also, don’t forget to take a look at one of our newest products, the portable USB electronic cigarette battery charger. This charger can not only recharge your ecig batteries up to 18 times on the go, but it can also charge your iPhone. A must have for anyone who has portable USB devices.
Smokers have a choice! And that choice includes the Electronic Cigarette!
