When Smoke Clears, E-Cigarette Foes Hazardous To Health
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal recently announced plans to seek a ban on the sale of electronic cigarettes in the state. This ill-advised decision follows a federal Food and Drug Administration report that put a scare into electronic cigarette users across the country, telling them that these battery-powered devices which deliver nicotine without burning tobacco like conventional cigarettes are dangerous because they contain carcinogens.
The agency also reported that of 18 cartridges tested, one contained diethylene glycol, an ingredient in antifreeze. The FDA threatened to remove electronic cigarettes from the market and to take enforcement action including potential criminal sanctions against product distributors.
Backed by the finding that e-cigarettes contain carcinogens and diethylene glycol, a number of anti-smoking groups and several other states in addition to Connecticut have jumped on the bandwagon, considering or enacting legislation to remove these "harmful" devices from the market.
However, the FDA failed to mention in its press conference that the levels of tobacco-specific nitrosamines (the carcinogens) detected in electronic cigarettes were extremely low, below the level allowed in nicotine replacement products, such as nicotine patches, inhalers and gum. The agency is not threatening to take nicotine patches or gum off the market, although they too contain detectable levels of carcinogens.
When Smoke Clears, E-Cigarette Foes Hazardous To Health -- Courant.com
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal recently announced plans to seek a ban on the sale of electronic cigarettes in the state. This ill-advised decision follows a federal Food and Drug Administration report that put a scare into electronic cigarette users across the country, telling them that these battery-powered devices which deliver nicotine without burning tobacco like conventional cigarettes are dangerous because they contain carcinogens.
The agency also reported that of 18 cartridges tested, one contained diethylene glycol, an ingredient in antifreeze. The FDA threatened to remove electronic cigarettes from the market and to take enforcement action including potential criminal sanctions against product distributors.
Backed by the finding that e-cigarettes contain carcinogens and diethylene glycol, a number of anti-smoking groups and several other states in addition to Connecticut have jumped on the bandwagon, considering or enacting legislation to remove these "harmful" devices from the market.
However, the FDA failed to mention in its press conference that the levels of tobacco-specific nitrosamines (the carcinogens) detected in electronic cigarettes were extremely low, below the level allowed in nicotine replacement products, such as nicotine patches, inhalers and gum. The agency is not threatening to take nicotine patches or gum off the market, although they too contain detectable levels of carcinogens.
When Smoke Clears, E-Cigarette Foes Hazardous To Health -- Courant.com
