Should E-Cigarette Packs Have a Label that Says “Vaping Saves Lives”?
You can’t pick up a pack of cigarettes without seeing a warning about the health risks of smoking. You’ll have undoubtedly noticed the new FDA warnings on cigarette packets; a collection of high-resolution images depicting death, people with ghastly holes in their necks and tar-infested lungs, plastered with warnings about the risks of smoking. This is a regular part of life in many places in the world, but it doesn’t seem to work both ways. E-cigarettes have been shown to be considerably less dangerous than smoking, and without the same barrage of chemicals they don’t cause smoking-related illnesses.
The Facts
Smoking is, of course, extremely bad for your health. The tar, carbon monoxide and the host of other carcinogens you inhale play havoc with your body, causing cancer, heart disease and ultimately, death. E-cigarettes on the other hand reduce these risks considerably. The harmful chemicals and tar aren’t present, being replaced with a few known, safe substances such as propylene glycol, water, FDA-approved food flavorings and nicotine. Nicotine actually has a bad reputation, since it’s pretty safe if taken without the other ingredients in tobacco.
How Do They Save Lives?
Because smoking kills, and research is increasingly showing that e-cigarettes are effective in helping people quit smoking, it’s safe to say e-cigarettes can save lives. One piece of research showed that smokers who tried to quit using electronic cigarettes were twice as likely to succeed after six months as those who used ordinary nicotine replacement products. Not smoking tobacco reduces the risks of all smoking-related illnesses. Men who stop smoking by the age of 30 add ten years onto their lifespan. By stopping exposing yourself to dangerous chemicals, you may save your life by switching to vaping.
Anti-Warnings
The government is all too willing to place warnings on cigarette packets, but why not do the reverse? If e-cigarettes do save lives (which they clearly do), then why should we leave the packaging bare? Smokers are constantly subjected to horrifying images and descriptions to scare them away from smoking, but the old saying is true: you catch more flies with honey than you do with vinegar. The benefits of e-cigarettes should be shouted from the rooftops. With every cigarette packet bearing a warning, putting the reverse on e-cigarette packets would only make things fair.
Suggestions
The “graphic” image could display a user happily and healthily enjoying an e-cigarette, with the words “Vaping Saves Lives” proudly displayed underneath. The models could pose in bars, in restaurants and while they’re at work. Their faces wouldn’t have the worn, pallid appearance of a smoker; they’d be plump, fresh-faced, bright and sporting a wide grin. The message would be loud and clear: take the sensible, reduced harm approach and enjoy a longer, healthier life.
the fda playing nice??
that would be great, and i hope that thye will
Interesting thought, not sure how easy it would actually be to implement though.
Indeed….wouldn’t that send the ANTS marching
I don’t the FDA will ever play nice, not until they stop getting their pockets lined.
Good idea. But I doubt people will go for it sadly =/
Yes they should =D
It’s a nice thought and I have no doubt that vaping is saving a lot of lives and improving others. But you have to have a TON of proof before you can make even the most modest claim on a product. Most nutritional supplements, for instance, are very circumspect about the actual claims that they make. That’s why, if you believe in a product, spreading the word is the best thing you can do, and you’re doing that right here.
I don’t think we should go that far with it but it should state how it’s a better option
I don’t know if they should make it mandatory to put it on Ecigs. I don’t want the government telling me what I can or can not have on mine. But I wouldn’t mind getting a wrap from mine that has that on it for a while!
I really don’t see that ever happening. Plus, we really don’t know if it SAVES lives yet. We just know its a way safer alternative than smoking,
Crazy FDA
Cigarettes are like squirrels. They’re perfectly harmless until you put one in your mouth and light it on fire.
Personally, I think the government should butt out of trying to put labels on any damn thing.
I’m with Slap on this one.
Ecigs are the safe way to go. More and more people are making the change
I’m with Slap
I agree with Slap.
Amen Slap! But wouldn’t it be awesome to see a commercial about the transition of vaping from cigarettes being a healthier choice on tv? Oh what a party we would have on that day!
i so agree…butt out!!! ha ha ha
im not sure on lableing the vape…they will somehow tax us on this.do us vapers have any protection against them taxing this?lord knows the taxes for the cigarretts never went to the health care they said it would…disgruntled…but will stay vapeing
DemonFire…let me know when it comes on! o.0
Commercial with Fiver slapping the analogs out of people’s mouths!!
yes
I agree with Mspuffinstuff. A mountain of evidence would have to be provided in order to get any such statement on an e-cig box. I was using a topical pain reliever and they were not allowed to market as a pain reliever until they added menthol. They did and it completely ruined the product for me. Word of mouth from vapers seems to be getting the attention of many smokers and the bigger the vaping world grows the quicker the new converts will be instroduced to E-cigs and Tobacco Harm Reduction. Who needs a label?
I highly doubt it. They are trying to shut us down ;(
Agree with slap. We are being labeled and regulated and back door dealed to death in this country . To be honest, I’d prefer if the government would just stay out of my life and let my make my own choices.
I like the idea in theory.. But throw me on the ‘agree with Slap’ train. The less the government interferes, the better.
it does,so yes
Lots of good ideas and thoughts here. Too bad the gov’t doesn’t read it… Not that ‘facts’ have anything to do with their decision making
Nice idea ..But i doubt will it work??
I doubt we’ll ever see apositive message on a pack of e-cigs, but who knows? It looks like the FDA will be officially ruling on e-cigarettes in the very nesr future, and odds are it will become a Nicotine replacement Therapy device.
Some time ago the FDA has already concluded that the warnings to stop using NRTs after a twelve week period were unfounded, and probably contributing to their failure, yet we still see labeling on all tobacco products that is not wholly true, and sometimes downright false.
I think with everything, it’s all about the almighty dollar. Maybe I’m just cynical but I read that someone said you need a TON of info to put those labels on…and I got to thinking about when the tobacco company put off telling people smoking caused cancer and other health problems. They did everything they could to stop people from finding out just how bad cigarettes were…now that we all know– of course those powerful big wigs will do what they can to stifle ecig sales. Can you imagine if e-cigs became commonplace? So many dollars wouldn’t be spent on real cigs, tax dollars would be lost, medical companies would lose many of their valuable, sick patients they so eagerly depend on. I think though, with our fast paced world– it won’t be long before ecigs are more common. I just saw a jersey shore person smoking one on her mTV show! It’s all going to happen in stride, as soon as they figure out how everyone can make money off of it.