The title of this post is a VERY important point in this mess. I am outraged that cigarettes are legal and vaping is under fire when “it’s safer than smoking”. Granted safer is NOT SAFE, but none-the-less adults who use(d) vaping to quit smoking cigarettes should be allowed to do so. Do I think there should be regulations, yes, but in the end…. Unless they make cigarettes illegal, vaping should be allowed by consenting adults.

There is evidence to suggest that using e-cigarettes is safer than smoking traditional cigarettes, “safer is different than safe,” and we need more time to develop substantial research on the subject. “With smoking-related diseases, you don’t know the effects till 20 years or more. So we won’t know the effects of e-cigarettes for 20 years or more,” he says.

Dr. Peter Shields, lung medical oncologist and deputy director of Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center

We KNOW for a proven scientific fact that cigarettes cause:

• Coronary heart disease
• Stroke
• Lung Cancer
• COPD
• Emphysema
• Chronic Bronchitis
• Many other types of Cancer
• Birth defects
• Sperm damage
• Smoking can affect bone health
• Smoking affects the health of your teeth and gums and can cause tooth loss
• And a bunch more

Vaping can be a valid Smoking Cessation Tool

• Nicotine is the primary agent in both regular cigarettes and e-cigarettes, and it is highly addictive. When you vape you have more control over the amount of Nicotine you are using.
• People who need the hand mouth comfort, like myself can find similar enough comfort to help them quit.
• Regular tobacco cigarettes contain 7,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic. Vaping is significantly less.
• Many people think nicotine is very harmful to health. It is addictive, but relatively harmless: it’s the thousands of other chemicals in cigarette smoke that cause almost all the harm from smoking.

Now I realize, many do not, that people smoke differently. This means that cessation techniques that work for some, may not work for others. Exactly the point.

I have tried to quit smoking so many times in my life I lost count. I tried the health department’s cessation class, which taught me the knowledge I eventually used to quit. I tried gum, patches, regular vape pens, cold turkey, cigars, TBX Free, prescription, delay, rationing, candy, tooth picks, stress balls, widgets and more! Nothing worked!

When I first tried the “vape pen” I wasn’t even remotely successful. I smoked both… Complete FAIL. Then my neighbor moved in and he is a “vape professional”. He is incredibly knowledgeable and works in a vape shop. He has been vaping for 10 years, plus. In any case he introduced me to “mods”… and helped me find “MY” missing ingredient for my recipe to quit smoking.

I am a hand/mouth smoker and while the shape of a vape pen is close, it’s not enough for me. Maybe in fact worse for me in hindsight as I couldn’t seem to “trick” my habit with them. Enter mods, now I am targeting my hand/mouth habit, but not tricking it…. This is HOW HABITS ARE CHANGED. Most importantly, with my new mod and sub-ohm I gained heat! HEAT was the key, I vaped without the dire craving for cigarettes!

I failed many times, but I believe now vaping 1.5MG that I am finally QUIT! My plan to be a ZERO NIC by 2020 is ahead of schedule as I intend to switch to zero Nicotine next week! I will probably, based on my own personal path history vape zero nic for at least 6 months.

Will I quit vaping? Right now I can’t imagine it, but way back in the beginning I couldn’t imagine 1.5MG juice either! I hope that once the Nicotine is gone my habit can then be replaced by something else like gum for example. Replacing habits is the single most effective means to breaking them.

While vaping is safer than smoking, it’s not without perils and consumers have to be careful!

Tips for Safer Vaping

• Always wash your gear thoroughly, especially so if you were sick whilst vaping that clip.
• Never use your coils past their expected life. If you burn one, even a little bit, pitch it wash and start over. As a personal rule I never vape more than 100ML through a coil.
• Never vape flavors with Diacetyl and avoid menthols in particular. Did you know that menthol cigarettes crystallize in your lungs too?
• Vape as little Nicotine as possible.
• Use respected brands of everything.
• Do not share your vape… Would you share your toothbrush?
• If a flavor, setup or type of vape makes you cough, don’t use it.
• Keep your e-juice secured away from reach of children, pets etc. Without your level of Nicotine tolerance, these are dangerous enough to kill them.
• If you have issues with liquids containing PG (Propylene Glycol), then opt for 100% VG (Vegetable Glycerin) liquids.
• Vaping, like cigarettes can cause dehydration, so drink water and stay hydrated.

My hope here is not only awareness & truth, but I want EVERYONE in the US to quit smoking cigarettes!