WASHINGTON- Matt Salmon, President of the Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA), today
denounced a quotation attributed to him by Epiphany Media Group in a press
release dated September 14, 2009. The falsely attributed quotation conveys the
mistaken impression that some e-cigarette products have been approved by the FDA
for consumer use. Salmon underscored the ECA`s commitment to abide by FDA
regulations.

“It has come to my attention that a press release with false and misleading
claims about e-cigarettes attributed to me was distributed without my knowledge
or approval. I want to make it unequivocally clear that I have never made such
statements or claims and they are patently false,” said Salmon.

The erroneous quotation, re-released on October 8, 2009, reads, “It is
disheartening that the FDA issued a warning to the public against electronic
cigarettes without conclusive data to support the claim.” The release goes onto
say that Salmon indicated that “some of the companies that are part of the ECA
such as inLife electronic cigarette product lines are approved by the FDA.”

“I don`t know of any electronic cigarette suppliers or manufacturers that have
been approved by the FDA,” added Salmon. “All of our members send a warning card
with every unit sold stating clearly that the product has not been approved by
the FDA.”

The ECA`s policy is that member companies cannot make any health claims about
their products or represent them as smoking cessation devices. E-cigarettes sold
by these companies are marketed as simply an alternative to combustible tobacco
smoking. Additionally, all members must ensure that they have taken precautions
to prevent people under the legal smoking age from having access to their
products.

“This requirement has been a long-standing policy of the ECA since its inception
and we will take the necessary steps to enforce it,” Salmon concluded.

Visit www.ecassoc.org for more information about the ECA and its member
companies.

Electronic Cigarette Association (ECA)
Matt Salmon, 202-587-5593
msalmon@policyimpact.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009

A ban on the sale of flavored cigarettes is now in effect, and one would think the rights of people have been irreversibly diminished.
Rather, the intent of the Food and Drug Administration was to pull those candy-sweet projects from shelves to stop youngsters from starting what could be a lifelong addiction to smoking.

The ban has upset anti-government types who claim they have a right to smoke what they want. The ban, required under a law enacted in June, gave the FDA the power to regulate tobacco products. Despite what some think, it’s a welcome first step to rein in what has become in effect a rogue industry that sells death to individuals, and drives up public health care costs.

And as could probably be expected, there are signs some manufacturers, distributors and retailers are trying to circumvent the ban by shifting young smokers to other flavored products, such as small cigars, that may not fit the legal definitions of a cigarette.

Let’s remember that we’re talking about flavored tobacco, because artificial additives like cherry, grape, chocolate, and spices such as cloves, appeal to youngsters. Let’s also remember that in anticipation of the ban, cigarette makers had mostly stopped producing flavored cigarettes.

Unfortunately, the law itself is vague in that it doesn’t clearly define what a cigarette is. It comes down to wrapping. Cigarettes are wrapped in thin paper, cigars in tobacco leaves. While the cigars also are made with a different
Advertisement
kind of tobacco, the taste is similar. The cigars come 12 to a pack, rather than 20 for cigarettes, but cost nearly half as much.

Kretek International Inc., which imports Djarum-brand cloves from Indonesia, holds a 97 percent U.S. market share with its line of Djarum clove cigarettes, a staple of Indonesian smoking culture. Now Kretek is making cigars close to the size of a cigarette and flavored with clove, vanilla and cherry.

The FDA is now examining options to regular both menthol cigarette and flavored tobacco products other than cigarettes. It makes no sense to ban flavors in cigarettes and then allow the industry to addict young people to flavored cigars.

Sandra Abel says some traditions never die, but realistic choices keep businesses operating.
It’s a philosophy that has served her and her husband Elliot well for 40 years as owners of the Tobacco Corner Ltd. in East Memphis.

As other tobacco stores struggle, Sandra Abel, 70, and Elliot Abel, 79, attribute the success of their 1,500-square-foot shop to a good reputation.
Sandra and Elliot Abel have owned Tobacco Corner Ltd. for 40 years. Their original store was on the Highland Strip for three years. They have been at their present location, 669 S. Mendenhall, for 37 years. The average cost for a cigar runs about $6.

Stan Carroll/The Commercial Appeal

Sandra and Elliot Abel have owned Tobacco Corner Ltd. for 40 years. Their original store was on the Highland Strip for three years. They have been at their present location, 669 S. Mendenhall, for 37 years. The average cost for a cigar runs about $6.

“In today’s economy, one store is more than enough,” Sandra Abel said. “These people that try to open a business like ours, I hope they succeed, but I think they’re asking for trouble.”

The Abels originally opened in the Highland Strip but moved to their current location on Mendenhall after just three years.

At times they have owned second locations in Whitehaven, Midtown and Raleigh, all of which are now closed.

For 31 years they also operated The News Room, an extensive newspaper and magazine shop, in an adjoining space to their current location, but it too fell victim to changes in the market.

“(The News Room) was very successful for many years and then like everything else, it started going down,” Sandra Abel said. “Let’s face it, computers have killed the world. Why would they want to come in and buy something when they can sit, click their mouse and read it online?”

The News Room closed in March 2008.

“Thank goodness, knock on wood, after 40 years men are still smoking and people are still buying gifts,” she said. “We’re very fortunate that we’re still here.”

But she said men, the vast majority of her market, have very few luxury items and are willing to keep spending for them even in tough times. Prices for cigars run anywhere from $2 to $20, with average sales around $6.

The Tobacco Corner offers about 400 types of cigars from 40 brand names. The brand Arturo is the store’s top seller.

“Four or five years ago there was a huge cigar boom to a point where we couldn’t get them in because the manufacturers couldn’t make them fast enough,” she said. “It did slow down, but we picked up a lot of customers in those years.”

The Abels build loyalty by encouraging customers to sit and enjoy their cigars at tables toward the back end of the store.

“Come lunchtime you can’t move in here,” she said. “At four o’clock on Friday afternoon you’re lucky to be able to get in the store.”

Bill Bagley has been visiting daily since his retirement, smoking at least two cigars before returning home.

“I get here about 9:30 (a.m.) and go home about noon,” Bagley said. “I smoke a broad range of cigars. It’s sort of like a club here. I see people I like here, and some people I don’t like.”

Sandra Abel noted that unlike cigarettes, it takes about an hour to smoke a cigar, so it was natural to offer customers a place to relax and enjoy their purchases.

Tobacco Corner employs five — two of whom have worked for the Abels more than 25 years.

While Sandra Abel said she hasn’t seen a drop in sales since Tennessee outlawed smoking in restaurants, she believes that newfound health-consciousness in America is to blame for changing attitudes about smoking.

“You have to take a stand on certain things in certain times,” she said. “You can’t just let the government dictate everything.”

She does not smoke cigars, but has enjoyed an occasional pipe. Elliot Abel is now semi-retired, working only a couple days each week, but Sandra has no plans to retire anytime soon.

“To some people (cigar smoking) is a status symbol like the brand name of a pen or clothing,” she said. “Most of them smoke for the pure enjoyment of it.”

I saw a TV commercial recently that touted the health benefits of high fructose corn syrup. At first, I thought it might be a skit from “Saturday Night Live.” Unfortunately, it wasn’t.

There are several versions of the commercial, and they all inform us that high fructose corn syrup is made from corn – a healthy vegetable; it has the same number of calories as sugar and honey; and it’s perfectly fine in moderation.

Sounds reasonable. So why is high fructose corn syrup high on the list of dietary villains that help make us fat and contribute to the host of chronic diseases that cause us to live sicker and die quicker than virtually every other advanced industrialized nation? As is the case with most health issues, sound-bite commercials mask the complexities of the matter and often are misleading. Let’s take a look.
Simple sugars

Simple sugars are the building blocks of all carbohydrates, and the two main ones are glucose and fructose. When you bond these two together, you end up with sucrose, or table sugar. Fructose often is referred to as fruit sugar. It’s sweeter than glucose, and when you ingest it, it goes to the liver, where it is either burned for energy or converted to glucose and released into the bloodstream.

In the past in the U.S., we used table sugar to sweeten things. But eventually, sugar became too expensive because we had to import it, and alternatives were sought. Corn is cheap, and a sweetener can be made by milling the corn to produce cornstarch, which is then processed down to a syrup that is almost entirely glucose. Then the glucose is processed further and converted to fructose, which is sweeter. High fructose corn syrup comes in several forms, but most are approximately half fructose and half glucose, which is similar to the composition of sucrose (table sugar).

Because it’s cheaper, high fructose corn syrup began showing up everywhere – soft drinks, candies, crackers, cereals, salad dressings, ketchup, juices, bread and other baked goods, etc. This was not seen as a problem because high fructose corn syrup was merely serving as a cheaper alternative for sugar.
The problem

High fructose corn syrup was introduced approximately 30 years ago. Since then, consumption has increased progressively, and today we are the world’s largest consumer. But consuming too much may be more problematic than it sounds.

There is some scientific evidence that high fructose corn syrup may not be recognized by the body in the same way as naturally occurring sugars found in fruit and cane sugar. Natural sugars help trigger a physiologic response that tells us when we’ve consumed too much, which stops us from consuming more. If high fructose corn syrup doesn’t trigger this reaction, we would consume more calories than we might if what we were eating was flavored naturally. This would result in increased body fat.

In fairness, there is controversy surrounding high fructose corn syrup and obesity. Obesity rates in the U.S. and especially among children have increased dramatically over the past three decades since high fructose corn syrup was introduced as a sweetener. Those who support high fructose corn syrup and who profit from its sales claim this is just a coincidence, and they demand proof that high fructose corn syrup is causing the obesity.

Sound familiar? For years, the tobacco industry hid behind the statistical technicality that while there is a high correlation between increased cigarette smoking and lung cancer, and even though lung cancer was rare before smoking became popular, it’s only a correlation. This means it shows a relationship, but does not prove a cause. This technical foolishness held up until the evidence became so overwhelming that common sense won the day.

Whether or not high fructose corn syrup is a primary cause of obesity, there are other concerns. It may contribute more to fat that is stored deep in the body around the abdominal organs.

This fat is known to promote pre-diabetes (insulin resistance) and <0x000A>to increase blood fats (triglycerides).
The bottom line

If you are trying to lose body fat, or you are among the tens of millions of Americans suffering from the epidemic of pre-diabetes, reduce sugar intake, and especially intake of high fructose corn syrup. Examine the ingredients on food labels, and if you see high fructose corn syrup, avoid that food.

Cut fat, too, and saturated fat especially. Cutting back on these dietary villains can work wonders for your health and your physique. Go for it!


© Dailycomet

The same kind of thinking that prepares children for God with Santa Claus lets people believe cannabis is as dangerous as tobacco.
It’s a grim fact of life that the vast majority of humans are prone to blindly follow leadership. Further complicating matters, in males the capacity to dominate is governed by the capacity to deceive.

Thankfully, in females the capacity to lead is evenly distributed between those who are honest and those who can lie. But think of it, what greater power of persuasion can we exert than making people slaves out of fear based on a lie?

Cannabis is the most studied, medicinally active and industrially versatile plant on earth. This means it has enemies in almost every economic sector. Competition separates good and evil. Evil is a means to an end. Dominance.

And since the government lies as it claims such importance for sending a clear message, it’s left to a fraction of the 30% of critical autonomous thinkers to set the record straight.

So be it.

Bruce Codere


Fox Creek, Alta.
© Copyright (c) Canwest News Service

DOHA: The ministries of trade and industry and health as well as various authorities concerned in Saudi Arabia are studying ways to curb the entry of banned electronic cigarette devices, also known as “e-cigarettes”, into the kingdom.

The move comes after the issuance of a warning on the use of these devices by the US Food and Drug Administration, which said they contain harmful carcinogenic and toxic substances, notably diethylene glycol, a toxic chemical used in antifreeze.

“E-cigarettes,” are battery-operated devices designed to look like and to be used in the same manner as conventional cigarettes. The devices generally contain cartridges filled with nicotine, flavour, and other chemicals. They turn nicotine, which is highly addictive, and other chemicals into a vapour that is inhaled by the user.

Advertisers and marketers of the device have been falsely claiming that it is a successful method to quit smoking, and have sometimes used the World Health Organisation’s logo on the devices’ packs.

Saudi Arabia is one of the leading countries that have banned the sale of “e-cigarettes” because of the harm the devices cause. The devices have been popular for the past few years following their introduction in China in 2004.

“E-cigarettes”, which sell for around SR500, are manufactured in China to be marketed globally, mainly in Europe.

Upon testing it was found that the “e-cigarette” harms human health far more than the normal cigarette and it contains 40 times as much nicotine as a regular cigarette.

The head of the Saudi Smoking and Drug Awareness Organisation said their use was still limited and there were no official importers of the devices within the kingdom.

There is new high-tech help for smokers trying to quit. E-cigarettes are fake cigarettes which either provide the nicotine or the smoke, supposedly without the harmful effects of traditional cigarettes. Yet, upon investigation, the products are not approved by the FDA and while they may be safe, their potential dangers lay uninvestigated.

Alicia Vazquez tells us, “It’s not bad.” She’s a heavy smoker who dragged on an e-cigarette we brought her.

This e-cigarette looks like a cigarette, but it’s plastic and it burns propylene glycol, which is the substance theaters use to produce mist and smog on stage. Her e-cigarette doesn’t have tobacco in it. The owner of this e-cigarette claims it helps smokers quit.

They can hold and inhale the cigarette-like devices, but avoid the addictive nicotine and harmful carcinogens of a real cigarette.

Alicia goes on to say, “You can feel the smoke going in your mouth and your throat and it comes out.”

And, there’s a whole other line of e-cigarettes, like a battery-operated cigar we found, that don’t have tobacco but do deliver doses of nicotine. A tiny microprocessor heats the nicotine-solution when air is drawn in, and smokers are supposed to get a satisfying vapor to wean them off tobacco.

A starter kit is around eighty dollars.

Alicia and her mother, Elva, say the nicotine-free e-cigarettes they tried could work for them.

They say, “The sensation and the feeling that you’re smoking, it’s the same, the same thing.”

But, even as millions of e-cigarettes have been imported from China and others are made here in the U.S., many doctors and other health experts say they worry about e-cigarettes, especially what they don’t know about them.

Scott Ceretta is a respiratory therapist and works with the American Lung Association in Tucson.

He explains, “First off is the safety. The manufacturer of this product claim that it’s safe and only has nicotine and doesn’t have the harmful chemicals found in tobacco. But, again, we’ve been lied to before.”

Dr. Scott Leischow of the Arizona Cancer Center in Tucson says it’s likely e-cigarettes are less harmful than cigarettes with tobacco. But, he adds they haven’t been adequately tested here.

Dr. Leischow tells News 4, “We don’t know, this propylene glycol that the nicotine is mixed in, we don’t know what happens when a person inhales that over a long period of time.”

The Food and Drug Administration has stopped e-cigarettes from being imported, for now. But, they’ve taken no action to stop the online sale of e-cigarettes. So, as thousands of smokers who want to quit draw on these techno-smokes, doctors say be careful.

Dr. Leischow adds, “People who use this product, especially if they use it over time, they’re taking a risk. They need to understand it’s not FDA approved. It’s never been fully studied. It may reduce their smoking, or it may not. We don’t know.”

The health professionals we spoke with recommend you stick with the approved tools to stop smoking, like nicotine gum, inhalers, and patches.

They advise using those products along with counseling, for the most effective results. The Arizona Department of Health Services has a smokers helpline staffed by counselors to help you quit. Just call 1(800)-556-6222.

Could you imagine James Bond stirring his martini at an exotic casino while waiting for the battery to charge his electronic cigarette?

Electronic cigarette?

Yes, the “smokeless cigarette” is hitting the market, promising devoted smokers a way to get a puff of nicotine and look, act and feel like they’re smoking, but without burning tobacco.

The device makes the classic pickup line “Got a light?” go the way of secondhand smoke.

And it raises questions about regulation and use.

Although the battery-powered cigs don’t produce tobacco smoke, should users be banned from “vaping” in restaurants and airplanes? Just where can you vape, as the lingo calls vapor inhaling?

That’s a sticky point, and the etiquette is far from settled.

For anyone buying e-cigs, consider yourself a bit illicit. E-cigarettes inhabit a legal gray area. The Food and Drug Administration recently blocked some e-cig imports, and officials want to halt sales. At least three makers sell them online, and one maker sells in Tampa malls.

Nicotine and all things tobacco are hot issues. In June, the FDA gained new authority to regulate tobacco products. Taxes on a variety of tobacco goods are going up, and Florida added an additional $1 tax on cigarette packs Wednesday.

President Barack Obama recently vented about his struggle to quit smoking, saying he doesn’t smoke in front of his kids, “but there are times I mess up.”

Enter the electronic cigarette companies, promising a device that looks, feels and tastes like a cigarette.

Inside, most models have a battery-powered vaporizer that turns a nicotine and tobacco-flavored propylene glycol gel into a vapor for the user to inhale. With some models, the vapor they exhale resembles smoke, though manufacturers claim it doesn’t smell like or linger as long as tobacco smoke.

Starter kits cost $60 to $120, depending on the brand, plus the cost of cartridges, which come in flavors including light, menthol, cherry and vivid vanilla.

The NJoy electronic cigarette company tells users, “Do not be surprised when people ask about you smoking NJoy. After all, to the casual observer, using NJoy creates the appearance of tobacco smoking.”

Jason Healy, president of the e-cigarette company Blu, said he regularly uses his product on airlines, including Quantas, American Airlines and Southwest.

“I just show it to the flight attendants, explain it, and they’re usually fine,” Healy said.

Since launching online sales in April, Blu, based in Charlotte, N.C., has sold more than 22,000 starter kits.

That kind of success bothers anti-smoking advocates.

“They’re just another way the tobacco industry has found to target addicts for a profit,” said Gary Stein, tobacco programs coordinator for the Hillsborough County Health Department.

Florida tobacco law does not address electronic cigarettes, so they could be used in places where cigarettes aren’t allowed, such as restaurants, Stein said.

This year, the FDA blocked some imports of the devices from China, citing drug laws. Officially, the FDA considers them a drug delivery device and wants them to undergo scientific vetting before they could be sold in the United States, said Siobhan DeLancey, a spokeswoman for the FDA.

The FDA regulates smoking-cessation devices, such as patches, so some e-cigarette makers are careful to market their devices only as substitutes for cigarettes, not quitting aides.

Mattew Steingraber, founder of the Tarpon Springs-based White Cloud e-cigarette company, said he wants federal law to clear up the matter because he would prefer not to operate in a “gray area.” In the meantime, he has opened up kiosks in a half-dozen area malls.

The NJoy e-cigarette company sells refill cartridges in stores such as Costco and freeway rest stops, including TravelCenters of America and Pilot. A trade association of e-cigarette makers claims $100 million in annual sales.

On a social level, e-cig users face other obstacles. Tobacco-free or not, several places across Tampa don’t want the devices around.

“I don’t see them going into restaurants, period,” said Jessica Raia-Long, chef and co-owner of the NoHo Bistro gourmet restaurant in Tampa. “For a bar, fine, that’s what they’re for. But if there’s any scent to them at all, it would eventually permeate everything and bother people. I’d have to light candles and incense to cover it up.”

University Community Hospital considers them cigarettes, said spokeswoman Phoebe Ochman, and would kick out anyone using them.

In contrast, Chris Bjarkman fires up his e-cigarette close to the New Port Richey hospitals he frequents as a firefighter in Pasco County. A former two-pack a day Marlboro Red cigarettes smoker, Bjarkman said, “I see patients and doctors out there having to smoke way out on the sidewalk — not me.”

Before going to the Trop for a Rays game, users might want to consider the team’s stance on e-cigs. There isn’t an official one yet, but basic manners and comfort of other fans holds sway, says spokesman Rick Vaughn.

“We would look to the industry to help standardize the rules regarding in-stadium use,” he said.

Southwest Airlines officials toyed with allowing e-cigarettes on planes and listened to presentations two years ago by at least one e-cigarette maker hoping the airline would allow them.

Southwest decided on a policy against them, said spokeswoman Marlee McInnis.

“We have made it clear we do not accept them,” she said. “We definitely don’t want people concerned about them.”

©  2.tbo

Citing safety as the reason for the legislation, a new Indiana law taking effect July 1 will require all cigarettes sold in Indiana to burn out more quickly when left unattended in an effort to reduce the number of smoking-related fires.

Cigarettes are the No. 1 cause of fatal residential fires in the country, killing approximately 800 people annually. One-quarter of victims of smoking-material fire fatalities are not the smokers whose cigarettes started the fire; 34 percent are children of the smokers, 25 percent are neighbors or friends, 14 percent are spouses or partners and 13 percent are parents.

Last year, there were 138 smoking-related fires in Indiana, leading to four deaths, 11 injuries and $3.4 million in property damage, according to the National Fire Incident Reporting System. In 2005, NFIRS showed that 124 reported smoking-related fires occurred. Those fires caused two civilian deaths, 16 civilian injuries and five firefighter injuries with property loss at almost $1.5 million.

The new design of cigarettes contains the same amount of tobacco as before but force a smoker to inhale to get the flame through two strips of paper incorporated into the cigarette. The two (or sometimes three) thin bands of less-porous paper act as “speed bumps” to slow down a burning cigarette. If a fire-safe cigarette is left unattended, the burning tobacco will reach one of these speed bumps and self-extinguish. The change in design isn’t expected to change cigarette prices. The law doesn’t apply to cigarettes that consumers roll themselves.

“The cigarettes are made from the same blend of tobacco as regular cigarettes,” Jim Greeson, Indiana state fire marshal and Indiana Department of Homeland Security Division of Fire and Building Safety director, said. “The only difference to the consumer is they need to puff it more often or relight it.”

Indiana’s law was signed in March 2008. Forty-eight states either have similar laws in place or will have new regulations in effect by August 2010.

To know which cigarettes are fire safe, check the UPC code for either the marking “FSC” (most common); a heavy black line above the UPC; a diamond symbol; or the letters FS, LIP or RIP.

Copyright © 2009 Corydondemocrat