subject: How Electronic Or E- Cigarettes Work [print this page] If you are one of the millions of smokers who are concerned about the dangers of smoking or if you are a frustrated smoker who is tired of not being able to smoke in your workplace, airports, restaurants and other public areas you need to learn more about the newest alternative to traditional cigarettes: the electronic or e-cigarette.
The e-cigarette is not meant to be smoking cessation device. The electronic cigarettes are rather marketed as a healthier way to inhale nicotine than the traditional cigarette for both the smoker and those around the smoker. There is not extensive research on the effects of smoking electronic cigarettes and there is currently considerable debate in the health community about the potentially positive and negative health effects of using e-cigarettes.
Electronic Cigarettes Simulate the Smoking with Fewer Health Concerns
The electronic cigarette is a revolutionary new invention which allows a smoker to inhale vaporized nicotine instead of burning smoke. Developed in 2003, e-cigarettes look, feel and taste like traditional cigarettes. The experience for the smoker of an e-cigarette is very similar to smoking a traditional cigarette but the smoker is not exposed to the carcinogens and tars associated with traditional cigarettes. Those around the smoker are not exposed to second hand smoke only to a water vapor. Additional non-health related benefits of smoking an electronic cigarette are: there is no smell while smoking and no lingering order left on the smoker's clothes, hair and furniture; and there is no fire or ash.
Electronic cigarettes, while promoted as a healthier alternative to traditional cigarettes because they do not deliver with the nicotine vapor the tars and carcinogens associated with traditional cigarettes still deliver nicotine to the smoker. Nicotine has been shown to be associated with increased blood pressure and cardiovascular problems in some smokers. Electronic cigarettes while they may eliminate the risks of cancer and other lung diseases associated with the tars and carcinogens inhaled when smoking traditional cigarettes do not diminish the effects of inhaling nicotine.
Parts of an Electronic Cigarette
An electronic cigarette is a fairly simple device. It has 3 main parts: a battery, an atomizer, and a mouth piece and a nicotine cartridge, and some simple electronic circuits. There is little to go wrong with the e-cigarette. The only maintenance is the replacement of the mouth piece and nicotine cartridge when the nicotine solution is consumed or when the smoker want to change flavors.
The batteries are powerful and compact, rechargeable, lithium ion batteries which heat the air in the atomizer and light the tip of the electronic cigarette to simulate the glow of a lit cigarette.
The atomizer or heating element is typically activated when the user inhales on the cigarette mouthpiece. Some e-cigarette atomizers are activated when the smoker presses a small button on the cigarette. When activated a heating element heats the air flowing through the cigarette and into the atomizer. The heated air turns the liquid nicotine in the cartridge into a gas vapor which is inhaled by the smoker.
The nicotine cartridges include the mouthpiece and hold the liquid nicotine solution. The solution is mainly water and nicotine with some propylene glycerin or glycol or vegetable glycerin and flavorings. The cartridges can be found in various flavors including tobacco, menthol, cherry, and vanilla and various levels of nicotine ranging from none to high levels.
There are a number of styles of e-cigarettes all of which work on the same technology. Some are designed to resemble traditional cigarettes while others look more like a ballpoint pen. Most e-cigarettes are reusable with only the nicotine cartridges and mouthpieces needing to be replaced although there are some disposable e-cigarettes on the market.
Conclusion
While we understand how electronic cigarettes work mechanically the jury still appears to be out on all of the health effects of the e-cigarette.
What we do know is:
*electronic cigarettes do not produce smoke and therefore are an alternative for those who want a way to get nicotine in nonsmoking areas;
*e-cigarettes do not produce a secondhand smoke only a water vapor; and
*there is no fire or burning tobacco and the tars and carcinogens associated burning tobacco involved when you use electronic cigarettes.
