Letter to the editor: Electronic cigarettes shouldn’t be part of ban

The proposed smoking ban currently circulating seems to have erroneously included electronic cigarettes. This inclusion indicates that these devices need to be banned as they present a danger.

To present any danger, however, the vapor would need to contain harmful substances.

The ingredients in vapor include propylene glycol and/or vegetable glycerin, water, food-grade flavorings and a tiny percentage of nicotine. All of these, except for nicotine, are classified as GRAS (generally recognized as safe) by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Nicotine is a stimulant with effects quite similar to caffeine. Nicotine does not cause lung disease, heart attacks, strokes or cancers. These are caused by other elements in smoke. Furthermore, the most recent testing conducted at a laboratory in Italy did not detect any nicotine in the exhaled vapor. (Clearstream Study, May 2012, utahvapers.com/clearstream.html)

Dr. Michael Siegel of Boston University School of Public Health has conducted several studies of e-cigarettes. He states that there is no justification for banning the indoor use of e-cigarettes based on potential harm to bystanders.

Steve Johnson

Grand Forks

(Johnson co-owns and operates SnG Vapor of Grand Forks, which retails electronic cigarettes)

Tags: opinion, letters, tobacco