Vaping News

Trying to CDC the Truth

Vapers and bloggers welcome the CDC’s new study.

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“For years anti-smoking activists and public health officials have tried to justify their irrational hatred of electronic cigarettes by arguing that vaping leads to smoking,” wrote Sullum. “But that is not happening.”

On POTV we have striven to cover all of the debate surrounding the so-called Gateway Effect. We reported when Linda Bauld said: “Our survey is in line with others in the different parts of the UK that show this is not happening.” Within 24 hours of the Welsh Health Survey being announced we had coverage of its embarrassment to Mark Drakeford online.

It is highly unlikely that anti-smoking activists and public health officials read the site – but they can’t ignore the CDC report. It has “has blown a major hole in the case against e-cigarettes,” according to the DailyCaller.

What is so amazing about it?

For those obsessed with The Gateway, just 0.4% of current vapers were previously non-smokers. Claims that the electronic cigarette industry is targeting youth, marketing at the through colours and flavours, looks utter nonsense against this less than half a percent figure. The most irksome aspect to studies being rejected by the likes of Glantz and McKee is that they infer some kind of industry-sponsored bias, accusations that can’t be levelled at the CDC.

The baseless concerns that vaping leads to smoking requires evidence that never-smokers have taken up vaping in the first place. It also needs a graph to show that an increase in vaping has led to an increase in smoking. Nothing exists to evidence these requirements. The CDC report kills the first and universally accepted figures for the decline in smoking demonstrate no link is there.

What else do they say?

  • e-Cigarettes were the most popular route out of smoking for ex-smokers.
  • Vaping is the most popular option for current smokers looking to quit.
  • Although almost 10% of non-smoking 18-24 year olds try vaping the majority do not continue.
  • Less than one percent of non-smoking 40+ year old adults even try vaping.

This survey backs up the findings from ASH UK that stated although rates of trying vaping may have increased there is “no evidence that electronic cigarettes are a gateway to smoking.”

Dave Cross avatar

Dave Cross

Journalist at POTV
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Dave is a freelance writer; with articles on music, motorbikes, football, pop-science, vaping and tobacco harm reduction in Sounds, Melody Maker, UBG, AWoL, Bike, When Saturday Comes, Vape News Magazine, and syndicated across the Johnston Press group. He was published in an anthology of “Greatest Football Writing”, but still believes this was a mistake. Dave contributes sketches to comedy shows and used to co-host a radio sketch show. He’s worked with numerous vape companies to develop content for their websites.

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