Geekvape shared its expertise in computational fluid dynamics (CDF) at the 14th International Conference on Computer Modeling and Simulation, hosted June 24-26 by the Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications.
Geekvape has used CFD to structurally optimize ceramic atomizers. In designing electrically heated atomizers, the heat and mass transfer phenomenon is essential for maximizing the product’s performance. The company’s engineering team developed patented product designs with higher heat efficiency and better atomization performance.
“This invitation is a great honor for Geekvape to communicate with many international experts and scholars in related research fields, to discuss the latest technological progress and share our most recent findings,” said Jiadong Zang, who represents Geekvape’s advanced technology and application research institute, in a statement.
“This has profound implications for the future development of the global e-cigarette industry, as well as for the improvement of scientific and technological innovation to facilitate the industry’s high-quality development.”
“Today’s action is further progress on the FDA’s commitment to ensuring that all e-cigarette and electronic nicotine delivery system products currently being marketed to consumers meet our public health standards,” said FDA Commissioner Robert M. Califf. “The agency has dedicated significant resources to review products from the companies that account for most of the U.S. market. We recognize these make up a significant part of the available products and many have played a disproportionate role in the rise in youth vaping.”
These marketing denial orders (MDO) pertain only to the commercial distribution, importation and retail sales of these products, and do not restrict individual consumer possession or use—the FDA cannot and will not enforce against individual consumer possession or use of Juul products or any other tobacco products.
“We respectfully disagree with the FDA’s findings … intend to seek a stay and are exploring all of our options under the FDA’s regulations and the law, including appealing the decision and engaging with our regulator,” said Joe Murillo, chief regulatory officer at Juul Labs, said in a statement. “We remain committed to doing all in our power to continue serving the millions of American adult smokers who have successfully used our products to transition away from combustible cigarettes, which remain available on market shelves nationwide.”
After reviewing the company’s premarket tobacco product applications, the FDA determined that the applications lacked sufficient evidence regarding the toxicological profile of the products to demonstrate that marketing of the products would be appropriate for the protection of the public health.
In particular, some of the company’s study findings raised concerns due to insufficient and conflicting data—including regarding genotoxicity and potentially harmful chemicals leaching from the company’s proprietary e-liquid pods—that have not been adequately addressed and precluded the FDA from completing a full toxicological risk assessment of the products named in the company’s applications.
Matthew L. Myers, president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, called the FDA decision “the most significant action the FDA has taken to reverse the youth e-cigarette epidemic. Juul, more than any other product or company, has been responsible for creating and fueling the youth e-cigarette epidemic.”
The FDA says that, to date, it has not received clinical information to suggest an immediate hazard associated with the use of the Juul device or Juul pods. However, the MDOs issued today reflect FDA’s determination that there is insufficient evidence to assess the potential toxicological risks of using the Juul products.
“There is also no way to know the potential harms from using other authorized or unauthorized third-party e-liquid pods with the Juul device or using Juul pods with a non-Juul device,” the agency wrote in a statement.
“The FDA is tasked with ensuring that tobacco products sold in this country meet the standard set by the law, but the responsibility to demonstrate that a product meets those standards ultimately falls on the shoulders of the company,” said Michele Mital, acting director of the FDA’s Center for Tobacco Products. “As with all manufacturers, Juul had the opportunity to provide evidence demonstrating that the marketing of their products meets these standards. However, the company did not provide that evidence and instead left us with significant questions. Without the data needed to determine relevant health risks, the FDA is issuing these marketing denial orders.”
Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association, asserted on Twitter that the Juul decisions were “manufactured” and “complete nonsense.”
Andrew Bagley is the owner of the Illuminati Smoke Shop in Columbia, South Carolina, and says even with the popularity of Juul, he doesn’t have concerns about the ban’s effect on sales, reports News19.
“I’m not concerned,” he said. “We have quite a few other vape products that are PMTA approved, which just means at this point we are legally allowed to sell them and Juuls were a very small percent of our sales, it’s not that big of a deal.”
The National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have given the University of Louisville a $3.6 million grant to study the effects of flavorings like mango and bubblegum used in vaping products.
Researchers at UofL’s Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute hope to better understand the short-and long-term impacts of flavorings -specifically on the heart- and catalog which are potentially harmful, according to Kentucky Today.
“E-cigarettes are still relatively new, and we don’t yet fully understand what their health effects are,” said Alex Carll, an assistant professor in the Department of Physiology and co-lead on the project. “Understanding this could help us make better purchasing and regulatory decisions.”
The FDA banned flavors used in disposable e-cigarette and has not approved any flvors except tobacco through its premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) process. The agency contends that some flavors could appeal to kids and help fuel rising rates of youth vaping.
Matthew Nystoriak, an associate professor of medicine and co-lead on the project, said some flavors may seem harmless because they taste like or use the same ingredients as in food. But while those ingredients are safe to eat, they may not be safe to inhale.
“Our goal is to understand how individual flavoring chemicals impact the heart,” Nystoriak said. “There are many flavor chemicals used in e-cigarettes and if we know which are potentially more harmful than others, it’s possible for people to make more informed decisions about which products they use.”
Identifying their biological effects also is likely to help the FDA in regulating flavoring additives in e-cigarettes in the future.
Fire chiefs in the United Arab Emirates have warned drivers that leaving e-cigarettes and vaping devices in a vehicle could lead to a fire as temperatures rise during the summer. It was over 103 degrees Fahrenheit in Dubai on June 15.
Electronic nicotine-delivery systems (ENDS) devices and other battery-powered gadgets can be extremely susceptible to heat, causing them to melt and catch fire, the chiefs stated.
In the first three months of this year, Dubai’s emergency services responded to 94 reports of blazes involving cars, buses and trucks for several factors including electronic devices overheating. Everyday household items such as lighters, batteries, power banks, e-scooters, electric cigarettes, perfume bottles and gas cans can start fires if left in cars during extreme heat.
Lithium-ion batteries can catch fire as they are extremely sensitive to high temperatures and are found in many common devices such as e-cigarettes, mobile phones, e-scooters and power banks.
“Authorities warn against keeping all objects that have the ability to ignite such as the items mentioned,” Thomas Edelman, managing director of Road Safety UAE, told The National.
“This is the reason why airlines are very cautious about these items. Imagine how much warmer batteries can get when left inside cars during the hotter weather. They can react and potentially explode which poses great danger,” said Edelman. “When temperatures rise, gases can form more easily and a spark can basically ignite those gases and lead to a fire.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Tobacco Products and the National Institute of Health’s National Institute on Drug Abuse announced the availability and location of newly released and updated data files from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study, including the following:
The Wave 5.5 Special Collection data were collected from youth participants ages 13 to 19 between July and December 2020. Data in the PATH-ATS were collected between September and December 2020 from a subsample of adult participants ages 20 and older, complementing the Wave 5.5 Special Collection. Additionally, Restricted-Use Files have been updated to include Wave 5 Ever/Never Reference Data, and the Restricted-Use and Public-Use Master Linkage Files have been updated.
Questions about the collection, content, weighting, documentation, or structure of PATH Study data (this excludes questions on statistical analysis or analytic guidance) may be submitted to PATHDataUserQuestions@Westat.com.
The largest atomization technology brand yesterday released its “Race to Zero” roadmap to carbon neutrality. FEELM, a division of China-based vaping hardware manufacturer Smoore International, stated that its plan brings forward FEELM’s ambitions to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 in its direct production activities and indirect purchased energy. The company has also made a commitment to use renewable energies in at least 30 percent of its total energy consumption by 2030.
“As one of China’s first atomization tech brands to make a carbon neutrality commitment, FEELM pledges to reach net zero in full supply chain and full product lifespan by developing sustainable products, improving energy efficiency with automated production, supporting the supply chain in decarbonization, and increasing renewable energies and eco-friendly materials,” a press release states. “FEELM, being the world ‘s largest closed vape system solution provider, plays a significant role in the global vaping supply chain.
“On the one hand, it provides millions of global consumers with premium product experience by virtue of partnership with vaping brands around the world; on the other hand, FEELM has been leading a sustainable revolution in the supply chain.”
Beginning in 2019, FEELM has pioneered a number of green vaping solutions. The company won the iF Design Award 2020 for its disposable paper e-cigarette, which is made up of spiral composite paper tubing that improves “the degradability rate to approximately 76 percent of the total volume,” compared to the plastic used in traditional vaping products.
FEELM is also set to unveil another eco-friendly non-nicotine disposable e-cigarette at Vaper Expo UK 2022 in late May. The new device was awarded the Red Dot Award for Product Design 2022. Its external structure is composed of recyclable and reusable aluminum foil. It looks similar to a paper foil pouch that also serves as a packaging bag, which the reduces the amount of packaging materials.
“In addition to developing sustainable products, FEELM has also partnered with suppliers to develop and encourage utilizing biodegradable materials while optimizing the water, electricity and gas consumption management,” the release states. “FEELM is also working with global customers to promote the recycling and reusing, so as to explore a feasible path towards carbon neutrality for the product lifespan and the supply chain.”
All nontobacco nicotine is now subject to the same regulations as tobacco-sourced nicotine in the U.S.
By Timothy S. Donahue
It was both expected and unexpected. Everyone in the vaping industry knew that at some point the U.S. Congress and the Food and Drug Administration were going to decide on how to handle synthetic and nontobacco nicotine. It was generally believed that regulation would appear in an appropriations bill in September, meaning vaping advocates thought they had time to fundraise and prepare for a battle.
They did not. Instead, the language for changing the definition of the Tobacco Control Act (TCA) to include all nicotine products was buried on page 1,861 of the 2,741-page omnibus spending bill that was signed by President Joe Biden in March. How the rider found its way into the omnibus has caught the ire of many in the industry who say major tobacco companies are seizing the vaping industry away from the small business owners who got it started.
Senator Richard Burr was allegedly approached by R.J. Reynolds and Juul Labs representatives about getting the synthetic nicotine rider in the omnibus that at the time was winding its way through Congress. Burr joined forces with fellow senators Dick Durbin and Patty Murray and Representative Frank Pallone to get the nontobacco nicotine language into the omnibus, according to two Senate sources familiar with the discussions, as reported by Bloomberg Law.
Azim Chowdhury
Azim Chowdhury, a partner with the law firm Keller and Heckman, said he interprets the rule to mean that all synthetic products already on the market or newly marketed within 30 days after the enactment date can continue to be marketed during the 60-day period following the enactment date. The law became effective on April 14, and manufacturers will have until May 14, 2022, to either submit a premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) to the FDA for each vaping product that contains synthetic nicotine or pull their products from the market.
Manufacturers that submit PMTAs to the agency by the May 14 deadline can continue marketing their products until July 13, 2022. Beyond that date, all products must be removed from retail stores unless the FDA has issued a marketing authorization, according to Chowdhury.
“We do not anticipate FDA authorizing any synthetic nicotine products by the end of the 90-day period, though they may take another Fatal Flaw (the term Fatal Flaw was used by the FDA for PMTA submissions that didn’t have specific studies and were subsequently denied) approach to quickly deny applications,” said Chowdhury. “Significantly, the rider in its current form indicates that a synthetic nicotine version of a product that already went through the PMTA process and is subject to a refuse-to-accept, refuse-to-file, marketing denial order (MDO) or withdrawal of a marketing order would have to come off the market as of the effective date—i.e., after 30 days of the law’s enactment.
“In simpler terms, for products that were previously formulated with tobacco-derived nicotine—and the only change was a switch to synthetic nicotine—and whose PMTAs have already been refused or denied, those products will effectively be banned on the effective date—30 days after enactment—with no opportunity to submit a new PMTA. This is Congress’ way of punishing companies whose PMTAs were denied and then, in their view, sought to circumvent the law by switching to synthetic nicotine.”
MIchelle Minton / Credit: Competitive Enterprise Institute
Michelle Minton, writing for the Competitive Enterprise Institute, states that given the FDA’s sluggish track record, many of the applications may not even be reviewed, let alone approved, in that time, which would make the bill a de facto prohibition on those products. “FDA has made it painfully clear that there is no way for those companies to earn its approval,” Minton said. “All it will do is guarantee that companies and consumers are pushed in ever-greater numbers toward a growing illicit market where there are no consumer protections and no age restrictions—or back to smoking.”
Stately response
Beyond the PMTA conditions, if a marketing order is granted, manufacturers of synthetic nicotine products are also subject to all the regulations for tobacco products. Keller and Heckman interpret this to include all additional TCA requirements, including tobacco product establishment registration and product listing; ingredient listing; ensuring that labeling is compliant, including required warning statements; and health document submissions, among others.
Many states had already started to ban synthetic nicotine unless a product gets marketing approval from the FDA. Legislation has been introduced in four state capitals and enacted in one state, Alabama, that effectively bans all products containing synthetic nicotine. Patrick Gleason, vice president of state affairs at Americans for Tax Reform, said Alabama, then Mississippi, Maryland and Georgia, were the first states to introduce legislation effectively banning synthetic nicotine products. However, he says there will be no need for more state legislation to ban synthetic nicotine now that the federal government has added it to the TCA.
Yaël Ossowski
Yael Ossowski, deputy director of the Consumer Choice Center, said that making companies ask permission to sell harm reduction products in the 21st century is “asinine.” Using “sleight of hand” during an emergency government funding bill to “castigate millions of vapers and the entrepreneurs who make and sell the products they rely on,” he noted, is the definition of active harm.
“Only the largest and most powerful vaping and tobacco companies can afford the lawyers and the time necessary to complete the paperwork necessary to pass the FDA’s process, meaning thousands of hardworking American business owners will now be forced to close, depriving millions of adult consumers of harm-reducing options. Many will be forced back to cigarettes,” said Ossowski. “Synthetic nicotine is an innovative method of providing nicotine independent of tobacco, and millions of American adults now use these products as a less harmful method of consuming nicotine. A backdoor bureaucratic power move like this represents a sledgehammer to the men and women of our country who have sought out vaping devices to kick their cigarette habit.”
There is no sell-through period for retailers of synthetic nicotine products if the manufacturer does not file a PMTA with the FDA by May 14. While some manufacturers plan to end sales of their synthetic products by the deadline, as Ossowski suggests, others plan on submitting robust and timely applications. Patrick Mulcahy, CEO and co-founder of Streamline Group, parent to the Streamline Vape Co., wrote in an email that his company has been working toward a solution to navigate the regulatory landscape for newly deemed synthetic nicotine products.
“We have recently contracted with Accorto Regulatory Solutions to manage, submit and deliver a complete set of premarket tobacco [product] applications. To date, their track record of applications submitted have received zero MDOs. Their commitment to submitting a complete and robust PMTA is the level of service Streamline aims to provide the market with our current and future line of products,” he said.
“Streamline’s goal during this process is a commitment to provide full transparency, informational updates and other news related to these regulatory requirements as we progress through the various phases of the PMTA,” Mulcahy stated, adding that market confidence is a top priority for Streamline Group, which was submitting PMTAs for its Juice Head brand e-liquids, disposables and nicotine pouches along with its NIIN brand e-liquid and pouches.
Organized approach
April Meyers, SFATA
April Meyers, owner of Connecticut-based Northeast Vapor Supplies and CEO of the Smoke-Free Alternatives Trade Association (SFATA), told Vapor Voice that her organization believed the industry would have more time to hold discussions with legislators on the Clarifying Authority Over Nicotine Act of 2021 (HR 6286) introduced by Representative Mikie Sherrill in December of last year. SFATA members were aware of the mounting pressure on the subject of synthetic nicotine and had been developing strategies to counter the pressure.
Given the inclusion of vapor in the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act in the 2021 omnibus, the nonprofit vapor industry advocacy group was not completely surprised to learn that HR 6286’s language had been included in the 2022 omnibus bill, according to Meyers.
“We went immediately to work educating our members on the issue, executing a call to action and making a volley of calls to sources at the Capitol, including our contacts at the freedom caucus,” said Meyers. “Those sources confirmed that a handful of large vapor companies and several Big Tobacco companies were in support of the measure. We were also informed that the House and Senate votes would move quickly and that there was little opportunity to get the provision removed. This was discouraging, to say the least, but did not dissuade us from acting. This industry has learned to mobilize quickly and has achieved several victories under similar circumstances.”
Meyers said that while the sponsors of the synthetic nicotine rider claimed the intent was to close a loophole on synthetic nicotine-derived products from large companies now popular among youth, the rule, and others like it, are very unlikely to have that intended effect. Instead, she said, consumers using these products as a harm reduction option will suffer alongside all the small businesses that have always operated in full compliance with federal, state and local laws.
“The FDA created a problem by overregulating a product used by millions of adults who find vaping a safer alternative to smoking. When a market in high demand is overregulated, gray and black markets emerge where there are no regulations requiring safe products or ID checks. The vapor industry is incredibly resourceful,” Meyers said. “SFATA believes our government should have learned its lesson from the 1920s that prohibitionist policies never work. In this country, and particularly, this industry, where there is a will, there is a way. Despite the attempt to bring the vapor industry to heel, adults have been vaping flavored products in the U.S. for [nearly 15 years]. It is delusional to think that will be snuffed out with the signing of a law. Our fear is that this will pave the way to a growing illicit trade market while simultaneously increasing smoking rates across the country as studies have already demonstrated in localities with flavor bans.”
Tony Abboud, VTA
Tony Abboud, president of the Vapor Technology Association (VTA), said that everyone who understands anything about PMTAs knows that an application cannot be filed within the 90-day time frame, particularly because the FDA requires at least six months of scientific data for such an application. He said the new rule could become a de facto ban on synthetic nicotine that would have some unintended consequences.
The VTA hired economic research firm John Dunham & Associates to evaluate the negative economic impacts that a synthetic nicotine ban would have in the U.S., according to Abboud. The results included 16,100 lost jobs, over $800 million in lost wages and $2.5 billion in lost economic output. It would also cost the U.S. more than $500 million in yearly taxes.
Amanda Wheeler
Amanda Wheeler, owner of Jvapes and president of American Vapor Manufacturers, said during the 103rd annual meeting of Vapor Voice’s parent company, TMA, that she hopes the FDA offers “some kind of enforcement discretion” to small businesses, especially those manufacturers that are trying to follow the rules.
“I can only plead with the FDA at this point not to repeat the mistakes of 2020 and 2021, finding an arbitrary reason to toss all of those applications out on their ear. The consequences this time are even more dire,” said Wheeler. “We have this serious handicap on our hands as far as the time frame … I think we need to treat businesses equitably and recognize that there is only so much that people can do in 60 days. And enforcement discretion would be the thing that’s most helpful to prevent companies from having to look for an alternative solution.”
The Vapor Technology Association (VTA) has again met with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) to help clarify any questions the regulatory agency may have surrounding synthetic nicotine.
VTA representatives met with dozens of CTP regulators from seven different offices inside CTP to confront any concerns about premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) for synthetic products that are due on May 14, according to a VTA email.
Credit: Opolja
During the meeting, several speakers joined the VTA in shedding light on how synthetic nicotine is manufactured, its purity, and its similarities and differences compared to tobacco-derived nicotine. Dr. Bill Jackson, PhD (Organic Chemistry), Dr. David Johnson, PhD (Physical Analytical Chemistry), Dr. Ray McCague, PhD (Organic Chemistry), and Dr. Willie McKinney, PhD (Inhalation Toxicology), all have experience in synthetic products and shared that expertise with the regulatory agency.
Johnson and McKinney also have extensive experience with the FDA having previously served on FDA’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Council, according to the VTA.
“As with our first meeting, we are encouraged by the level of engagement by the CTP’s Office of Science on this issue,” the VTA stated in a release. “And, we greatly appreciate the participation of numerous FDA scientists from the various responsible divisions within the office with whom we were able to share our scientific knowledge and advanced thinking on the key issues.”
The VTA is hoping to continue to engage the FDA to help the agency better understand the nature of synthetic nicotine, according to Tony Abboud, executive director of the VTA.
“Our work is not done. These meetings, and the additional meetings that we are working on, are just part of VTA’s multi-pronged strategy to ensure the proper and full assessment of synthetic nicotine PMTAs,” said Abboud. “If your company is manufacturing products containing synthetic nicotine and is serious about regulatory compliance, or if your retail operation wants the ability to continue to diversify its retail offerings with synthetic nicotine products, or if you want to have continued access to innovative products containing synthetic nicotine, you should strongly consider being engaged in our strategic efforts.”
When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued marketing granted orders to the NJoy Ace and its tobacco-flavored e-liquid pods on April 26, the ACE became the first e-cigarette authorized by the FDA equipped with a ceramic coil. That coil is manufactured by FEELM, the flagship atomization tech brand belonging to Smoore International.
The Ace marketing orders mark the first approval by the FDA of a pod vaping product. It is also the first approval of any vaping product manufactured by a company that is independent of the tobacco industry.
Smoore is no stranger to seeing its products get marketing approval from the FDA. The first brand to receive marketing orders through the premarket tobacco product application (PMTA) pathway, Vuse Solo, is a strategic partner of Smoore, a Smoore representative explained to Vapor Voice. The second set of approved electronic nicotine-delivery system (ENDS) products, produced by Logic, are also manufactured by Smoore.
“NJoy has partnered with Smoore since 2009. The NJoy Ace was launched in 2018 and is powered by FEELM inside, the world’s first black ceramic atomization coil with metallic film. As the first ceramic coil e-cigarette and pod vape authorized by the FDA, NJoy Ace’s approval for sale fully showcases the harm reduction potential of FEELM ceramic coil,” the representative said. “According to the FDA, NJoy Ace is authorized for sale because ‘chemical testing was sufficient to determine that overall harmful and potentially harmful constituent (HPHC) levels in the aerosol of these products is lower than in combusted cigarette smoke.’”
Based on PMTA requirements, Smoore established a comprehensive analytical testing and safety assessment system, including the vaping industry’s first corporate toxicology laboratory, which explores the health impacts of exposure to e-cigarette vapor by means of cytotoxicity test, evaluating the reaction of living cells to different components of e-cigarette vapor, according to Smoore.
The company has also developed the third generation of in-house safety standards – Smoore 3.0 – that covers all of required PMTA tests, including for HPHCs listed by the FDA.
“The principle of PMTA is to scientifically and systematically substantiate harm reduction performance of the vaping product and show it is appropriate for the protection of the public health (APPH)”, said Dr. Long, director of the Smoore Analytical Testing and Safety Assessment Center. “The manufacturer must demonstrate the product’s potential to switch adult smokers while preventing youth and non-smokers from nicotine addiction.”
Long said this could explain why all the FDA-authorized vaping products so far have been for tobacco flavors, and popular flavored products the agency has said promote youth use have been issued marketing denial orders. It is also an indication that vaping manufacturers should focus on “tobacco flavor reproduction and improve harm reduction performance” in order to be approved under the PMTA pathway.
According to Nielsen, for the two weeks ended April 9, 2022, Vuse has now surpassed Juul and become No.1 in U.S. e-cigarette sales with a market share of 35 percent. Its flagship product Vuse Alto is also equipped with FEELM ceramic coils.
As the No. 3 player in the U.S., NJoy accounts for approximately 3.1 percent market share. Moreover, a federal judge has required the FDA to provide progress reports on PMTAs submitted by major vaping brands and the first reports are due on April 29.
The FDA also found that the risk to youth initiation with NJoy’s Ace was outweighed by the benefit to adult smokers, warning that NJoy must comply with strict post-marketing requirements.
More than 60% of all doctors incorrectly believe all tobacco products are equally harmful, making them less likely to recommend e-cigarettes for people trying to quit smoking, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open.
The study, led by Rutgers University, shows that researchers asked more than 2,000 doctors in the U.S. in 2018 and 2019 about how they would advise patients on using e-cigarettes ask a method of combustible smoking cessation. One in four physicians discouraged all use of e-cigarettes and also were more likely to advise against them if the hypothetical smoker they were counseling were a younger, light smoker compared to an older, heavy smoker.
Credit: Airdone
Although no associations were found between harm-reduction beliefs and being asked about e-cigarettes by patients, the association between physicians’ harm-reduction beliefs and their e-cigarette recommendation practices was significant.
“These findings show it is critical to address physicians’ misperceptions and educate them on e-cigarettes’ efficacy, particularly correcting their misperceptions that all tobacco products are equally harmful, as opposed to the fact that combusted tobacco is by far the most dangerous,” lead author Cristine Delnevo, the director of the Rutgers Center for Tobacco Studies, said in a statement.
The belief that all tobacco products are equally harmful was associated with lower rates of recommending e-cigarettes, the study states, adding that as the evidence base grows for e-cigarette efficacy for smoking cessation, there is need for physician education regarding e-cigarette efficacy.
“As the evidence base grows for e-cigarette efficacy for smoking cessation, physicians’ understanding of e-cigarettes in the context of harm reduction must keep pace with the emerging scientific evidence through effective educational opportunities,” the study’s authors write. “Such opportunities should address e-cigarette safety and efficacy and correct misperceptions that all tobacco products are equally harmful.”
