Do e-cigarettes work as promised?

In 2014, worldwide electronic cigarette sales totaled $7 billion. So even if you don't smoke, you've probably heard the term "e-cigarette."

But you may be a little fuzzy on what exactly an e-cigarette is.

An e-cigarette is basically an electronic nicotine delivery system.  Each cigarette has a battery-powered vaporizer in it which produces a similar feel and sensation as a regular cigarette.  There are both one-time and reusable versions.  The basic idea is that they are safer than regular cigarettes and a way to help you gradually quit smoking for good.

Sounds good, however a new study by the University of California, San Diego Health Sciences published in April of this year found that smokers who used e-cigarettes were 49 percent less likely to decrease cigarette use and 59 percent less likely to quit smoking compared to smokers who never used e-cigarettes.  The study followed 1,000 California smokers over a one year span.

California Department of Public Health director and state health officer, Ron Chapman, MD, MPH has this to say...

“There is a lot of misinformation about e-cigarettes.  That is why, as the state’s health officer, I am advising Californians to avoid the use of e-cigarettes and keep them away from children of all ages.”

Quote:

"When it looks like I may live longer than five minutes, I'll drop cigarettes like a hot potato." - actor Patrick Swayze (a heavy smoker right up to his death from pancreatic cancer in 2009.)