Quit smoking – Are Vapes the answer?

Vapes have become very popular for those people that want to cut down on real cigarettes or quit smoking altogether.

It is commonly known that although E-cigarettes are widely used as nicotine replacement, they do not contain tar which is responsible for diseases such as emphysema, bronchitis and lung cancer due to its poisonous and carcinogenic chemical compounds.

Effectively, cigarette smoke kills or paralyses the protective fine hairs (cilia) in the airways and this means that tar is able to penetrate the lungs and cause damage to the lungs (2)

To this end big organisations such as the WHO and the US food and drug administration have both recognised that E- cigarettes are less harmful than smoking real cigarettes(1).

There have also been studies done that evidence the fact that E-cigarettes are an effective aid in helping people quit smoking and that they do help people reduce the number of real cigarettes smoked (3) .

They also seem to be more effective than other smoking cessation methods, although the FDA have indicated that they are not as safe as other smoking cessation methods.

This has to be a good thing, as reducing smoking has to be of great benefit to anyone’s health.

However, does this make E- cigarettes completely safe?

We know that they contain nicotine in various doses depending on the Vape that you buy, and if you are smoking  a Vape as opposed to a real cigarette you are not ingesting tar and other harmful chemicals on top of the nicotine.

But worryingly, the FDA have also found that one vape cartridge contained diethylene glycol, a toxicant involved in mass poisonings.

Further to this and although the FDA deem Vapes to be safer than normal cigarettes, the following countries have all banned the sale of E-cigarettes due to not enough research or evidence being available that they are safe for users;

Austria,Brazil,Brunei,Columbia,Indonesia,Jordan,Malaysia,Mexico,Qatar,Oman,Panama,Singapore,Tawain,Thailand,Turkey,Uruguay,and Venezuela, (1 & 4).

Doctor Iain Kennedy a consultant in public health Glasgow called for Vapes to be banned in public places arguing that there are health concerns around passive Vaping.

He also cites the fact that the chemical diacetyl in e-cigarettes has been linked to scarring and constriction of the tiny airways in the lungs, and called for a ban on the use of this chemical in E-cigarettes.

He agrees that E- cigarettes are undeniably better and safer than real cigarettes, however, he also raises concerns that there is no evidence as yet as to the effects that long term use of E-cigarettes may have on the body.

However, Rosanna O’Connor, director of drugs, alcohol and tobacco at Public health England argues that banning the use of E- cigarettes in public spaces could be damaging to the health of smokers. She says that Vaping is not the same as smoking and that banning it in public spaces will prevent potential smokers being able to quit smoking(5)

On this basis, in years to come will it be too late to learn of any adverse health effects when users have already been using Vapes for years?

On balance there seems to be arguments for and against the use of Vapes and it is definitely an ongoing debate, inevitably with more research becoming available all the time on the advantages and disadvantages.

I would not attempt to favour one view over the other at this stage as I do believe more research needs to be done, so I hope that I have given a balanced view in this short article on both tobacco and Vapes as an aid to quit smoking.

That said, as a holistic therapist my own views are quite simple.

Any false substance that contains any kind of chemicals that you are putting into your body is going to be harmful and toxic in one way or another. The only answer for me to keep you safe from toxins is not to ingest any at all, whether it be real cigarettes or vapes.

Hypnotherapy is a completely safe and holistic approach to quit smoking. It targets your subconscious mind and helps you to give up altogether.*

For more info on my stop smoking therapy please see my stop smoking page at https://dohypnosiskent.co.uk/hypnosis-treatments/quit-smoking-hypnosis-kent/

For more tips on giving up please do have a look at this excellent article:

http://www.stopsmokingnowaids.com/complete-guide-to-help-quit-smoking-from-a-z/

Please see the following articles referred to in this blog

(1)Balsaraf, S. & Chole, R., 2016. Electronic Cigarettes:Needs urgent concern toward public health safety. Universal Research Journal of Dentistry, 6(2), pp. 108-112.

(2)http://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/ks3/science/organisms_behaviour_health/diet_drugs/revision/7/

(3)Caponnetto, P., Russo, C., Leotta, C. & Campagna, D., 2011. Succesful smoking cessation with electronic cigarettes in smokers with a documented history of relapses:a case series. J Med Case Rep, Volume 5, p. 585.

(4)  http://www.ecigarette-politics.com/electronic-cigarettes-–-global-legal-status-2.html

(5) http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/electronic-e-cigarettes-vape-ban-smoking-in-public-a7096986.html

Please note results may vary from person to person. There are never guarantees when undergoing any form of therapy and for this reason we do not offer any guarantees for any of our hypnotherapy services. *