The Dangers of Analogs

According to the National Cancer Institute, tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death among Americans. Its use is responsible for respiratory issues like emphysema and cardiovascular issues like heart disease. Smoking results in cancers of the throat, mouth, nasal cavity, esophagus, stomach, pancreas, kidney, bladder, cervix and more. Among those suffering from lung cancer, an average of 85% are due to cigarette smoking. Around 445,000 people die every year from issues related to cigarette smoking, with an estimated 50,000 dying from secondhand smoke. If you're a smoker, you're at six times greater risk of having a heart attack than a nonsmoker.

But quitting sucks. Trying to quit cold turkey makes you extremely irritable and no fun to be around, and smokeless methods like the gum and patch still leave you craving a cigarette. Sometimes if you do manage to quit, it's almost like a temporary truce, but once an ugly situation rears its head, it's back to the ol' cancer stick.

There's more to cigarette use than mere nicotine addiction. A large part of it is habitual. It may seem small and insignificant, but there's just something about actually puffing on something and exhaling something visible that makes smokeless alternatives difficult to stick with. Sure, you're getting nicotine while you have that gum parked in your cheek, but the space between your index finger and middle finger feels extremely naked at certain times, like when driving.

This is where the e-cig comes in. It's a smokeless alternative, but the way in which you ingest it is entirely similar to smoking the real deal. You hold a tube-shaped object between your fingers, you put it to your lips to puff on it, you inhale and can even get a nice throat hit, and when you exhale there's actually something resembling smoke. Except now you aren't inhaling the 10,000+ harmful chemicals that inhabit traditional cigarettes. It satisfies you the same way a traditional cigarette does, but without the use of flame and without all the smell, ash, smoker's breath, etc. You end up smelling better and saving tons of money. Sweet deal.