Nicotine regulation: UK future

[trog100]

the only thing that matters in the UK now is e cigs are legal.. dont be silly and try and sell them as NRT devices and u will be okay..

but as bob says they are all busy trying to save the world right now.. or more likely trying to arrange their own salvation when it ends..

trog

[Grumpysanta]

Scary reading, as I read through the posts. I have picked up on a couple of points though. I wonder what would happen if a few of the big tobacco companies muscled in on the act and started selling their own cartridges, lets face it there's nothing to stop them from doing it. Laughably they would probably be selling their own brand made in china, the very place people worry about quality standards.

I am reminded about the people who for years used Citizens Band Radio illegally and who eventually persuaded the government to introduce a legal Citizens Band Radio. Funny how you never hear about it these days but in those days even the police were in favour of Citizens Band Radio, legal or otherwise so I don't think the police would be too interested in chasing people who are using e-cigarettes. Rather than scaremongering I think it would be better to use the documentation we have to educate the uninformed and the powers that be (I have read the reports and though I don't fully understand all of it, it has answered some of my own personal questions regarding what we are actually breathing in using e-cigarettes and nicotine cartridges).

I also wonder how the talks with ASH are going as we need large recognised bodies like ASH to fight on our side, in other words people who really know how to fight governments.

[Kate]

One day the pharma and tobacco companies will want a slice of the cake. They know how to secure standards and quality control; they also have the resources to carry out clinical testing. It would benefit us to get quality, healthy products.

ASH are pretty influential I think so I contacted them via email recently. I got an email back and in turn have replied to that. I'll post some details of what was said soon.

Overall I got a very positive feeling, they seem to want esmoking to be the magic smoking cure as much as we do. We are on the same side.

[Grumpysanta]

I'm looking forward to the outcome with ASH as I said earlier we need large recognised bodies like ASH to fight on our side, in other words people who really know how to fight governments. ASH also understand how to fight a case internationally and as the UK is supposed to be part of Europe we need that kind of power behind us. It is worth while remembering that the UK currently has to abide to European Law so really the e-cigarette fight should be fought at international level. I am saddened by this thought because so many people died fighting against a dictatorship and yet that is exactly what out politicians in the UK have lead us to.

[Kate]

You're right about gaining international approval but we can only take it one step at a time and do what we can within our sphere of influence.

Apparently EU countries often follow precedents so if one approves then the others are more likely to. There was some talk about Italy regulating and approving esmoking but I haven't heard anything lately.

WHO are the biggies to get onside. If they are happy with trials and reports and esmoking fulfils their standards for regulation then that will be an indication of global success. The worlds smokers will follow.

I'm not meaning to be secretive about ASH, I just can't publish what has started out as private correspondence. I've asked the woman who wrote to me if it's ok to share her reply here so I'm waiting to see what she says.

[Grumpysanta]

I'm looking forward to the replies. It would be nice to stop the international predudice of people who crave nicotine. In a world where tollerance is preached for race, creed, colour and religion it's no wonder everyone is having a pop at smokers. Now that we have a way of enjoying nicotine without offensive smells or smoke its time to fight against predudice.

[TropicalBob]

I'm all for this but's lets not fool ourselves that any reputable health organization is going to give blanket support to use of a highly addictive drug, in liquid form, made in China, and untested and unregulated by government. That flies in the face of intelligence. They are not going to approve of, and certainly not even condone, e-smoking.

We don't even know what we're doing from a health standpoint. Does anyone really expect a WHO or ASH to jump aboard this great unknown train to nowhere, rolling along in darkness?

We must have assurances that the practice is safe, that the liquid is what it says it is and is harmless to inhale 300 times a day forever. Without clinical trials and a database of user successes and failures, e-smoking will not get approvals. It's the Dr. Loi's and Laugesen's alone that hold our hope. Their trials and reports can have real influence on a WHO or ASH.

[Kate]

One step at a time ... we can probably do it, it's just a question of how long it will take.

If we look at what we want to achieve (eg: a completely healthy, reliable, safe, fun, approved, smoking alternative for all smokers) and look at where we are up to (authorities becoming aware, no regulation, no clinical trials, no long term studies) then all we need to do is work out, step by step, how to get from here to there.

We're on the road, I don't know where it will take us but I'm happy at the moment to be involved.

[TropicalBob]

You're on the road, I'm on the train. Same destination, I hope.

Grumpy: Big Tobacco really doesn't give a snit about e-smoking. I posted this link elsewhere on the forum to where Big Tobacco sees its future -- and it involves tobacco! Check it out:

R.J. Reynolds Preps Dissolvable Tobacco

[Grumpysanta]

Thanks for the post, I read the article, and the one problem that I see is that it is still not the 'act' of smoking that we desire. This is where the e-cigarette comes in. I missed a post delivery today which I am hoping is the MINI e-cigarette I ordered (I've ordered a few things lately so I'm expecting quite a few deliveries). I understand your point of view that the smaller devices like the MINI may not be as good as the pen e-cigarettes but it is the similarity to shape and size of analog cigarettes that attract newcomers such as myself. Unfortunately it's also the same reason that confusion will reign amongst those who do not smoke and it's because of this I agree with some of the ideas in other threads regarding the use of blue LED's to clearly differentiate between e-cigarettes and analog cigarettes. Eventually, as more 'conventional' smokers become aware, sales of e-cigarettes that do not necessarily look like conventional cigarettes could become the norm but until then let the MINI and your knowledge pave the way forward, I only purchased mine after reading some of this forum.


Regarding Big Tobacco and Big Pharma, I reckon in time if they can see a way of making money out of e-cigarettes they will become interested, most likely they are holding back until the governing bodies have decided on which direction they want to take this, after all they don't want to invest money into something that could eventually be banned (let's hope that never happens).


Before anyone starts moaning, I do understand that e-smoking is not smoking , it's vaporing, it just looks the same.