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At first glance, it looks like the real thing. It's white, with a brown filter. When the tip glows red, a smoke-like puff follows. But this is not a typical cigarette -- it's an "e-cig." A what? An electronic cigarette.
Makers of e-cigs tout their product as the first healthy cigarette, free of harmful chemicals and tar typically found in tobacco products. The only ingredient: pure liquid nicotine. "Our product is comparable to the nicotine patch except people still get the oral fixation, which they love," explained Elicko Taieb, CEO of Smoking Everywhere, one of the largest distributors of electronic cigarettes.
But the U.S. Food and Drug Administration considers e-cigs an unapproved new drug because of a lack of scientific proof that they're safe or effective. The FDA is trying to halt importation of e-cigs, but isn't seizing products already being sold in the United States

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Tobacco smoke causes nearly 90 percent of lung cancer deaths, according to the American Cancer Society. "If it is a choice between smoking tobacco product or a nicotine replacement -- of course, keep taking the nicotine," Schroeder said. "It is a heck of a lot healthier than tobacco smoking."
Developers of e-cigs echo the thought. "We aren't claiming electronic cigarettes help you quit altogether, but I promise our product won't cause cancer. So no matter what way you look at it, it's the healthier option," Taieb said.

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ORIGINAL: Bettawrekonize

I find it interesting that the government wants to give the FDA control over tobacco only after this started getting more well known. Given the FDA's history of doing whatever is in its power to maintain the status quo (ie: banning alternative medicine that competes with pharmaceutical corporations), it's almost as if the government wants the FDA to ban this to prevent it from competing with cigarette companies. This is just speculation but the timing of this is interesting. BTW, I do not encourage people to smoke e - cigarettes, regular cigarettes, cigars, etc... and I am not saying that e - cigarettes should (or should not) be legal. Just wanted to look at the possible politics behind all this.

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No "possible" here, it is all Politics; in my opinion!!

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The Food and Drug Administration ... is taking aim at electronic cigarettes
...
Over the past year, the FDA has seized 50 shipments of e-cigarettes, which the agency considers to be combination drug/medical devices, says the FDA's Michael Levy. Companies were marketing the products illegally, because they hadn't gotten FDA approval for new drugs or medical devices, says Joshua Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of the FDA.

The FDA is reviewing the new tobacco law and considering a range of enforcement actions, which could include recalls or even criminal sanctions, Levy says.

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ORIGINAL: Ecig22
There is a lot more to the story, I have an online store call SmokeSticUSA.com and the E-Cigarettes that I sell comes from a company that makes there cartridges here in the USA, and as of right now they are the only E-Cigarette company that is.

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ORIGINAL: IllustratedMan
There's more to this story. Diethylene Glycol was a possible anomaly and is not as toxic as Ethylene Glycol, the main ingredient in antifreeze.

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ORIGINAL: Bettawrekonize

I find it interesting that the government wants to give the FDA control over tobacco only after this started getting more well known. Given the FDA's history of doing whatever is in its power to maintain the status quo (ie: banning alternative medicine that competes with pharmaceutical corporations), it's almost as if the government wants the FDA to ban this to prevent it from competing with cigarette companies. This is just speculation but the timing of this is interesting. BTW, I do not encourage people to smoke e - cigarettes, regular cigarettes, cigars, etc... and I am not saying that e - cigarettes should (or should not) be legal. Just wanted to look at the possible politics behind all this.