
Our Tobacco Cessation Center receives questions weekly on E-Cigarettes and whether they are a safe alternative to smoking or a safe tool for people trying to quit. Until now, the only answer we have been able to give is “There isn’t enough research” and “there are plenty of FDA approved alternatives to help you quit”. But a new academic national study from the University of California at San Francisco has found that e-cigarettes are gaining popularity with adolescents and are serving as a gateway to nicotine addiction or a crutch to use while still smoking cigarettes.
“It looks to me like the wild west marketing of e-cigarettes is not only encouraging youth to smoke them, but also it is promoting regular cigarette smoking among youth,” says one of the studies authors, Stanton A. Glantz, PhD, UCSF professor of medicine and director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education.
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