What are my odds of quitting with an electronic cigarette?
Last year over 3.5 million people used e cigarettes to quit smoking. In fact several large tobacco companies have publicly stated that they believe that e cigarette use will one day be larger than real cigarette use. The fact is e cigarettes are here to stay and they represent a real alternative to smoking real cigarettes.
E cigarettes treat all aspects of cigarette addiction. Nicotine addiction is just part of what makes cigarettes addictive. Many options out there for smokers who want to quit focus only on the addition to nicotine and do not address some of the other addictive elements to cigarettes. E cigarettes deal not only with the nicotine issues but several others as well.
One of my main issues was that I just enjoyed smoking. I would smoke after a meal and I would smoke in the morning and I would take breaks as work and smoke. And I just plain enjoyed the act of smoking. I got real pleasure out of taking a break and smoking or lighting up after a great meal.
Sticking a patch on my arm or chewing gum really didn't address the fact that I just plain enjoyed smoking. With e cigarettes I get to enjoy the act of smoking AND I get my nicotine fix without all the harmful stuff that your doctors will warn you about.
My favorite flavor of e cigarettes is menthol. I was a menthol smoker for many years so when I made the switch to e cigarettes I naturally wanted a menthol flavored e cigarette. There are a ton of different e cigarette flavors out there but my favorite is menthol.
I would suggest that you try lots of different flavors before you settle on a specific flavor that you stick with. Every flavor is a little different.
You can also pick the amount of nicotine you want in e cigs. I started out with e cigarettes with high levels of nicotine and gradually over time I reduced the amount of nicotine in my e cigs until I was using e cigarettes with NO nicotine.
E cigarettes are fairly new and there is not a lot of evidence out there and medical testing to support the claims that e cigarettes are healthy.
I am not a doctor but I do know that breathing in a liquid vapor has got to be healthier than breathing in smoke into your lungs.
I think that in time the medical community will start to see evidence that e cigarettes are safe and effective but for the time being they are somewhat skeptical. But that is what doctors are trained to be like. They are taught to seek evidence and use the scientific method to test test test. Never assume anything.
In time more studies will be done and e cigarettes will be endorsed by doctors. But until that time comes I am going to keep using my e cigarettes. I am willing to concede that e cigarettes may not be perfect. There may be some side effects. But it just seems logical to me that a water vapor mix, like a humidifier, has got to be healthier than breathing in smoke.