Is anyone else tire of arguing with friends about the "dangers" of vaping?

[baseballmom]

My mom is a new vaper, and she's being blizted by e-mails from her neighbor/friend with these anti-vape media articles(and this woman had shown interest trying out again before she started finding these sensationalzied anti-vape articles, and even had used the cigalikes from a mall kiosk years ago)-mom is holding her own, she knows what's up with bt and bp and the media-she's ignoring and deleting them, funny how she's getting e-mails, but nothing said in person face to face. My biolog. dad started on me last night, but didn't pursue-he knows I will back up my side, give him my reasons, and it's my choice/harm reduction-not perfect, but better.

 

[philfish]

My girlfriend was very wary about what was in the vapor, now she is happy cause I don't stink like analogs! I haven't had anyone else get uptight so far, but I'm pretty careful about where I vape. I gave a small talk about vaping on a casino fun bus to a little group of smokers, two of them have called me with questions about what to buy to start out with!

 

[Vermonster13]

Just remember you'll have quite a few more years to argue the point with them since you quit the cancer sticks.

 

[MalkinMania71]

I have been very fortunate with the family and friends. They have all loved the vaping idea. I have 4 friends and a mother in law that has switched over since I quit smoking so easily. Not all of them are completely smoke free but 2 of them are. They love it as much as I do. We share juice and show off our new purchases like others show a new pair of shoes. It has been great. My mom's first question on the phone is always, "how many days has it been?". I'm 39 years old and my parents gave me a $50 iTunes card for quitting. lol Yes married with children and I am still spoiled. People are very curious and ask a lot of good questions and thanks to this forum, I usually have an answer.

My husband was at a motocross race this weekend and they were at the starting line when a guy tried to be very subtle about hitting one that looked like mine. My husband was like Hey my wife just started using one of those and he kinda looked down and said yea I just started too. My hubby said that's great! Keep on Vaping! Then the guy smiled and said haven't had a cigarette yet. So people are worried about what other people will think and say, which is sad because this is a positive thing. Although I was told by someone yesterday that my vv battery makes it look like I am walking around with a vibrator in my hand.

I'm not sure how I will react to the first idiotic anti-vaping comments, but given my penchant for sarcasm I'm sure it won't end well for them.

 

[Panorama911]

I have had a few comments made and all were really dumb. One lady was in favor of banning in a local arena as she claimed there are chemicals in the vapor and she did not want her little girl to breathe them in....I asked her "and you are only concerned with her breathing the vapors in?" She never mentioned her concern for herself or others, I had to assume she was using her little daughter as a "tool" to make her anti Ecig point. She then said "well yes I am concerned for me and others but I don't want my girl to be exposed to the dangerous chemicals."....

I then replied, " yep the dangerous chemicals are....PG(actually stated in full wording) which is used in asthma inhalers for decades and approved and tested by the FDA thoroughly, flavorings like cinnamon, peppermint, chocolate, vanilla, the same flavorings you can get in the spice isle in your local food market, also approved for human consumption and nicotine...provided the user even has nicotine in the liquid, and it is absorbed into the users bloodstream. What little would get into the open air would be minimal at best and the chances of anyone getting hooked on nicotine through secondhand exposure would take 50 years of sitting next to the vapor to even get hooked."

"We are only here for 3 hours sitting next to your girl and only vaping occasionally, I think your safe!"

I then added "I appreciate your concern but if you are going to be ANTI ANYTHING, please do some research first, then make your assertions." I then said "look, we who use Ecigs are trying to quit tobacco use to save our own behinds not kill people!"

She went into the usual defensive mode, " I don't care what you say, it is dangerous and I don't want my daughter exposed to it!"

My last comment was, " I don't like breathing in your perfume and the guys body odor in front of you, I say we ban those too!" " What say you?".......silence

Dal

 

[sarvis]

I'm 39 years old and my parents gave me a $50 iTunes card for quitting. lol

Too bad there's not a way to send a "like" to your parents.

 

[CKCalmer]

Why is the media making my friends and family think that vaping is no better than smoking?

When someone repeats a lie, they lose as much credibility as the originator of the lie.

Therefore, to anyone repeating a lie, I would say, "Shhh, people without credibility shouldn't be heard."

 

[zoiDman]

I find it Somewhat Amusing that people will Argue that using an e-Cigarette is Dangerous. As if to say that Smoking Cigarettes is Not?

LOL

 

[cbabbman]

I find it Somewhat Amusing that people will Argue that using an e-Cigarette is Dangerous. As if to say that Smoking Cigarettes is Not?

LOL

I find it even more amusing when they do it with a beer in their hand

 

[Dochartaigh]

Playing devil's advocates here, but when somebody says something negative about your e-cig, and you counter, all that other person has to say to shut you up is "has there been any long term studies on VG/PG vaporizing at the levels people commonly vape at?" and/or "has there been any long term studies on vaporizing food flavorings/additives which were never meant to be inhaled?".

Case and point is they can say all they want. You can say all you want. Nobody is really right or wrong because long term studies haven't been done. You can justify your habit to yourself all you want, but if you're honest with yourself, and honest about what we know at this point in time, you really can't say for 100% if it's safer than smoking or not. It could be worse.

...or better. We just won't know until decades and decades have passed. I personally *hope* it's better, which is why I'm doing it right now, but I'm not as naive as a lot of the people here who seem to be convinced it's near-harmless. NO scientific proof has shown that in the long run. Period.

 

[Amraann]

I have only had one person say something negative. It was not really about me but about another friend who vapes.

Basically they had both agreed to quit smoking. Friend #1 quit cold turkey and is rather arrogant about it. Friend #2 quit by switching to e-cigs.

Friend #1 was here visiting one day and mentioned how he was annoyed with friend #2 for not quitting. To which I said "YES HE DID"
Friend #1 said "it is the same thing!" I proceeded to enlighten him as to how it is not the same at all.
He did not further pursue his argument

 

[Amraann]

Playing devil's advocates here, but when somebody says something negative about your e-cig, and you counter, all that other person has to say to shut you up is "has there been any long term studies on VG/PG vaporizing at the levels people commonly vape at?" and/or "has there been any long term studies on vaporizing food flavorings/additives which were never meant to be inhaled?".

Case and point is they can say all they want. You can say all you want. Nobody is really right or wrong because long term studies haven't been done. You can justify your habit to yourself all you want, but if you're honest with yourself, and honest about what we know at this point in time, you really can't say for 100% if it's safer than smoking or not. It could be worse.

...or better. We just won't know until decades and decades have passed. I personally *hope* it's better, which is why I'm doing it right now, but I'm not as naive as a lot of the people here who seem to be convinced it's near-harmless. NO scientific proof has shown that in the long run. Period.

How can it be worse when so many people who have switched to vaping have reported improved health and lung function?
Many to the extent that they do not need asthma medications like they once did?

 

[Dochartaigh]

How can it be worse when so many people who have switched to vaping have reported improved health and lung function?
Many to the extent that they do not need asthma medications like they once did?

You watch TV, right? How many infomercials have you seen that start with "Have you taken XXXX medication?", "It has been linked to __list horrible disease here that only shows up decades later___", "call now to join our lawsuit". There's tons of things like that.

Asbestos was used for decades and through to be completely safe, until 50 years later all the installers start getting mesothelioma (cancer). Hell, they used to give babies medicine that contained opium. Ever hear of Coca Cola or Laudanum? (main ingredients were coke and ...... back in the day).

How many drugs (drugs that had to be in clinical trials for years and years before getting approved by the FDA) gave pregnant women babies with birth defects?

How long did it take them to discover that smoking cigarettes causes lung cancer (and a whole bunch of other problems)? Decades. Sure, we're much more medically advanced now, but there's literally hundreds of more recent examples just like these.

People really can't spurt out "but they use PG in asthma medicine and the nebulizer my baby uses when he's sick with a cold...and the fog machines at concerts" when the amount of that chemical we're taking into our bodies 18 hours a day, every day, is like 10,000 times that amount.

Neither can they talk about the flavorings in e-liquid. Those flavorings were/are/might-be FDA approved for food that we EAT. Not vaporize and inhale into our lungs. Totally different health effects between the two - and the scary part is we don't know what those long-term health effect might be. Like I said before, it could be nothing whatsoever, but we just don't know at this point in time.

 

[Panorama911]

Playing devil's advocates here, but when somebody says something negative about your e-cig, and you counter, all that other person has to say to shut you up is "has there been any long term studies on VG/PG vaporizing at the levels people commonly vape at?" and/or "has there been any long term studies on vaporizing food flavorings/additives which were never meant to be inhaled?".

Case and point is they can say all they want. You can say all you want. Nobody is really right or wrong because long term studies haven't been done. You can justify your habit to yourself all you want, but if you're honest with yourself, and honest about what we know at this point in time, you really can't say for 100% if it's safer than smoking or not. It could be worse.

...or better. We just won't know until decades and decades have passed. I personally *hope* it's better, which is why I'm doing it right now, but I'm not as naive as a lot of the people here who seem to be convinced it's near-harmless. NO scientific proof has shown that in the long run. Period.

Well said actually as we do not know much at all at this stage. For the younger crowd, we may see the effects if any later as time goes by. For me, after 40 years of smoking and other abuse, the coroner will most likely say, "what we have here is another Keith Richards, you can decide what killed this man!"....LOL

Dal

 

[Shootist]

Why is the media making my friends and family think that vaping is no better than smoking?

My personal belief is. It is part due to, or mostly due to, BIG Tobacco. Just think of how many member there are on this forum that have quit buying cigs. Say the membership is 1%, or even 10-20 %, of all the people that have started Vaping and Quit smoking and buying smokes.

If you owned a business that has lost millions, and will continue to loose more, customers wouldn't you try to stop the bleeding by almost any means.

Big Tobacco has there nose in many politicians BUTTs along with lobbyists spreading money around.

 

[Bodog]

Thankfully my friends have been very supportive of my switch from cigarettes and welcome my vaping. There are a few that are convinced its bad and dont like to be by the vapor, but whatever they have every right to do so I guess.

 

[xrjon0609]

For the past year everything has been ok. Then ever since these news stories lately, I swear, 100% more people bring it up to me and approach me on it. It's crazy these sheeple!

 

[nomemory]

My favorite is when people say "you know those things will kill ya" I like to respond with "and so does giving unsolicited advice"

 

[zoiDman]

Just a Hypothetical Scenario.

Say that e-Cigarettes are Just as Bad for a Person as Smoking Cigarettes.

Isn't the Fact that they are Cheaper to Use per Month make them Better by Definition?

 

[iamAuz]

My favorite is when people say "you know those things will kill ya" I like to respond with "and so does giving unsolicited advice"

haha awesome!