Why does the medical field know so little about vaping?
- Thread starter Marvin & Sennie
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After reading this thread, I think a number of you have bad doctors.
See this poll for further information...
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/polls/120181-did-your-doctor-approve-your-vaping.html
The foot soldiers of the medical community (doctors) may be one of our best allies.
They, for the most part, seem to get it.
And if you have a doctor that doesn't get it, it might be time to get a new doctor.
See this poll for further information...
http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/polls/120181-did-your-doctor-approve-your-vaping.html
The foot soldiers of the medical community (doctors) may be one of our best allies.
They, for the most part, seem to get it.
And if you have a doctor that doesn't get it, it might be time to get a new doctor.
Thankfully this wasn't my Dr but the triage nurse in the ER. The Dr herself seemed cool with it as is my Dr and nurse 
Because they will lose their jobs if they say anything that goes against big pharma and FDA.
The real problem is that medicine is more evidence-based now, and this is a newer technology so evidence of being safer and effective for tobacco cessation, harm reduction, etc just hasn't been accumulated enough yet, but it will eventually. However, there is the art and clinical instinct (termed clinical impression) side to medicine, which is why many doctors are tentatively on board with this, as common-sense medicine is practiced as well.
Yes we are. But some of us cannot afford to switch doctors so readily.
There's no solid proof right now about long term effects on using e cigarettes. One of my doctor's smokes 2 pad and the other is the complete opposite. Both of them are ok with my vaping. Think of doctor's back in the 50's who ended looking like complete fools for backing cigarette companies. I don't blame most of them for being reluctant. That is why I give out a ton of info. Even show my e cig to other patients in the waiting room. Only the ones who smell like smokes
An ingredient list and a simple explanation to my docs. That was all it took to convince them that vaping nicotine was a far lesser evil than smoking cigarettes.
If only Oprah Winfrey would come out in favor of vaping, all of our problems would be solved (just kidding...)
With all of the superstitions that folks have about the possible harm done by anything new, you have to ask yourself how anything at all can get into the marketplace without the thread of being encumbered by massive amounts of regulation. Thank goodness carbonated soda was invented in the 19th century -- it could never pass muster in today's regulatory environment.
With all of the superstitions that folks have about the possible harm done by anything new, you have to ask yourself how anything at all can get into the marketplace without the thread of being encumbered by massive amounts of regulation. Thank goodness carbonated soda was invented in the 19th century -- it could never pass muster in today's regulatory environment.
There are only two kinds of doctors. The type that spend all their free time at their mothers house and the type that spend all their free time getting hammered at the golf course. And then there is that one guy, Doctor House who is just crazy. None of them know what an ecig is except Doctor House and he aint sayin'..
This is an interesting concept
Flagrant violations of that ideal with regard to the safety and effectiveness of pharmaceutical interventions for smoking cessation are more or less the order of the day. In fact you might say that this whole field of pharmacotherapy is based on the evidence being unable to oppose the profitability of the products. If these pharmacotherapies were the only ones under consideration, we could change the statement 'medicine is evidence-based now' to a far more accurate 'medicine is propaganda and profit-based now'.
Luckily that is not the case in every area. I think perhaps it is because smokers are the new lepers, and the removal of their basic rights in any form is perfectly acceptable. Try doing that to any other group in society.
It would be interesting to see how long a description of medicines as 'safe and effective' lasted in any other area of treatment where the average failure rate is about 95% and almost half of the patients face a significant risk of serious disease and death as a result. The evidence basis for such treatments would probably come under a little more examination...
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You guys must be going to the wrong doctors. Every doctor, dentist, or surgeon I have seen in the last year has congratulated me on switching. They all ask me if I understand the risks and what the FDA has said. I ask them if they would like to discuss the validity of those studies, and then we both chuckle and move on. Of course they are not going to recommend (prescribe) them, they are not approved by the FDA, nor do any of my doctors tell me to use any of supplements that haven't been proven by the FDA. I try to emphasize the improvements that I have seen in my life since quitting analogs, and agree with my doctors when they say anything negative about nicotine.
My doctor I've been going to for 30 years, is now in his 60's, and is totally cool with the e-cigs.
He gives a huge thumbs-up to them, and loves that I quit smoking. He considers me a non-smoker
now. I'm going to totally hate it when he finally retires.
He gives a huge thumbs-up to them, and loves that I quit smoking. He considers me a non-smoker
now. I'm going to totally hate it when he finally retires.
I’ve smoked for 36 years and have seen the same primary care physician for almost as long. He has constantly been on me to stop smoking. According to him, that was the main factor for my high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, sinus problems etc. These problems have barely been maintained with medications, just barely. Also, I struggled with weight problems. My doctor is the old country/grandfather type who knows all about my family history and situations. Before my appointments, I used to suck on a mint so he wouldn’t smell tobacco on my breath. Of course, he would comment… no need for him to ask if I stopped smoking because he could smell it on my clothes and hair. When I recently went for a checkup, it had been 3 months after I started vaping. My BP was the lowest it had ever been. At my last visit 6 months prior, he wanted me to lose 5 pounds. I lost 23 pounds. My breathing was better and my sinuses were clear. He was amazed and asked me what I’ve been doing differently because I seemed so much happier. Then he asked me if I stopped smoking because he didn’t smell the smoke on me or my breath. I told him I’ve been exercising more and started using the ecig. He didn’t know much about it but because he saw the evidence from my examination, he was very pleased. His response was “well it definitely made a big improvement and he was very proud of me for taking this step”. I let him know that I was still getting nicotine and his response to that was… “…it can’t be hurting you since your health has improved..” I was the one shocked by HIS response. He ordered some blood tests and told me if my cholesterol level was down and my BP was down on my next visit, he would discontinue the cholesterol meds and reduce my BP meds. I currently take two BP meds.
My doctor saw improvements in my health after I stopped smoking using the ecig and I feel attitudes in the medical field in general will gradually change when doctors see firsthand the improvements in their patients’ health.
I'm sorry but this literally made me laugh out loud.
How much "evidence" do they really need to determine that something that contains just water, (GRAS) propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, nicotine and food flavoring wouldn't be as harmful as inhaling something that contains arsenic, benzene, ammonia, acetone, carbon monoxide, formaldehyde, tar, cyanide, etc., etc., etc? Could you imagine if doctors said they needed years of long-term study to determine if packaged foods with the fat removed and substituted with (GRAS) gelatin or corn starch was "safe and effective" to recommend to obese patients? They'd think the naysayers were either incredibly stupid or had some hidden agenda. Hmmm....lolAs far as "effective," as I mentioned in an earlier post, that depends upon intended use. E-cigarettes were not designed to be used as a treatment for nicotine addiction, they were designed to be a less toxic and less carcinogenic (ie. safer) replacement for traditional cigarettes. E-cigarettes don't need to prove themselves as an effective smoking cessation treatment same way NRT must, anymore than smoke-free tobacco does. The purpose is to eliminate smoke exposure NOT treat addiction. In the same way, the "intended use" of fat-free food isn't as a "treatment" for obesity that needs FDA approval as a weight loss drug. It's an alternative PERSONAL CHOICE to high-fat foods for people who want to reduce their health risks from fatty foods. Aren't some things just common sense? Remove the stuff that is bad for you and it is automatically safer/healthier? Maybe not 100% safe (nothing is) but there is no denying that it MUST be safer than the highly toxic alternative!
I recommend people read this article that I came across yesterday: Feds keeping people sick: The Vitamin D story
It gives a clear picture of how "evidence based" medicine and research really is (not). The parallels to how the medical and science establishment treat smoking harm reduction are uncanny:
I don't think that we should. The term "electronic cigarette" was the thing that caught my eye during an internet search looking for something else. If it was not called that, I would never have started doing research about it. Most smokers want to quit but don't know about this alternative. When I started vaping, no one else I knew vaped. I knew nothing... nada. Internet research got me into it. Further research led me here. All I can add to that is "Bless you ECF!" We have each other for support.
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