E-cigarettes have become a
source of consternation for anti-smoking lawmakers who quiver at the
very thought of someone lighting up a tobacco product. This
knee-jerk reaction to the dramatic increase in the use of e-cigarettes
in public is manifesting itself in places like Los Angeles opting to
treating e-cigarettes as if they were tobacco.
The
fear of second hand smoke amongst those who have waged a legislative
war on tobacco is one of the guiding principles behind these
governmental prohibitions with the City
of Los Angeles even going so far as to prohibit using e-cigarettes
in outdoor public places and parks.
But what is the truth about
the vapor emitted from using e-cigarettes?
In order to understand this
issue, one needs to understand that e-cigarettes do not involve
lighting a paper wrapped tobacco product and pulling the smoke through
into your lungs, as is the case with actual cigarettes.
Electronic cigarettes on
the other hand are not lit, and are essentially little more than a
plastic tube which turns nicotine into a flavored vapor that can be
consumed by a user. The vapor does not contain any of the
characteristics of a burning cigarette. Whereas a cigarette left
burning in an ash tray produces a haze that lingers throughout a room
or building, the vapor from the e-cigarette doesn't have the same
effect, as it doesn't emit vapor unless it is being used by a consumer.
When being used, the
e-cigarette vapor is only emitted into the atmosphere when the consumer
exhales. The e-cigarette vapor itself has been found to be
primarily comprised of nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerin, water and
flavors. This is an important distinction between the vapor
exhaled by an e-cigarette user and a tobacco smoker. Blah-Blah-Blah
