Study suggests E-Cigarettes may not be a gateway to smoking

With the increasing popularity of electronic cigarettes, there are many that fear that they may encourage young people to take up smoking. These concerns are so great that just last month, Euro MP's voted on proposals to tighten anti-smoking laws aimed at young smokers, these proposals included treating electronic cigarettes as medicinal products. Although the proposals were rejected, these concerns still remain and there are many people still pushing for regulation. However, a study conducted by Theodore Wagener, an assistant professor of general and community pediatrics at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Centre seems to disagree with the theory that electronic cigarettes are a gateway to smoking. The study included 1,300 college students with an average age of 19, and of these only 43 had tried an electronic cigarette as their first nicotine product. Of these 43 students, only 1 had started using nicotine products and the other 42 reported they were not currently using any nicotine or tobacco. The study which is yet to be published was presented to the American Association for Cancer Research. Wagener said "It didn’t seem as though it really proved to be a gateway to anything”, however he added that parents should still let children know that electronic cigarettes do carry some risk to them. Electronic cigarettes, although a healthier alternative to smoking tobacco cigarettes do still contain nicotine which is a stimulant and is highly addictive. Litejoy Electronic Cigarettes