As a vaper, I really dislike having to rain on that parade, but the last paragraph of the
Tribune article pretty much nails it:
With the data available now, Mayo Clinic does not recommend the use of e-cigarettes. At this time, we simply don't know enough about them. They have not been proven safe, nor have they been shown to be effective in helping people stop smoking. -- Jon Ebbert, M.D., Nicotine Dependence Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.
The operative phrase is, "
With the data available now..."
The flaw in the Tribune piece is:
The manufacturers claim that e-cigarettes are a safe alternative to tobacco cigarettes.
That implies
all manufacturers claim safety. It only takes one to
not claim it (dirt easy to find a ton of those), and that premise falls down hard.
That mistake doesn't invalidate the article, though. Just that part.
If we want to make the case for vaping, and all of us on ECF would like that I'd hope,
demand bulletproof science.
Right now it's Strawman vs Strawman.
Remember though, that bulletproof science may yield the opposite conclusion of what we hope for.
Sorry - I'm serious when I say that I really
really dislike being a contrarian on this topic. My life experience has often taught me that what I want or hope to be true, sometimes isn't.
