What a weekend.  Baby's been pretty fussy, we think he might have reflux issues.  My battery died for the first time, I measured it at 2.8v.  The hilariously-poorly translated booklet gave (apparently) incorrect blink codes so I thought perhaps there was a short in the atomizer, but no, just a low battery.  I haven't been able to "vape" for about ten hours, I messed with it thinking the atomizer needed flushing, and then forgot about it for a few hours.  I've thought about it a few times, but it never got much past "I wonder where my backup is..."

That's understandable, given a bit of research I just found indicating that while classic ADHD patients have a more difficult time quitting smoking than controls, ADHD-I (inattentive type, like myself) had comparable results.  That should give an interesting perspective to any researcher looking to understand the differences between the subtypes.

There's something I've been wanting to do but haven't had a chance to yet, and that's review my "personal vaporizer".  I have the DSE801 "pen style" model made by Sailebao.  The battery is slightly narrower and longer than the atomizer, so except for the mouthpiece at the top it looks just like a pen.  This has been handy in the office as I think it's avoided several "what is that?" moments.  I still feel a little uneasy explaining what it is and why I'm using it to people, except smokers of couse.  Over the last few weeks I've developed more of an understanding of what it's like to be a smoker without actually being one myself, perhaps by identifying with the smokers in some of the articles I've been reading about this subject.

Apart from appearance, I've felt that the 801 is a reliable device with good performance, battery life, and overall build quality.  I feel that what it lacks in appearance it makes up for with its other qualities (like myself! :p).  It's not the smallest e-cigarette out there, though.  In fact it's pretty hefty if you're comparing it to a cigarette.  I suppose you could classify this alongside cigars such as the ubiquitous "black'n'mild".

The e-liquid I have currently is unflavored so I can't speak to its ability to enhance or detract from this quality of the experience.  I did however win a bottle of "cappuccino" flavored liquid in a chat-room trivia contest from ecigsupply.com (thanks!).

Overall, I'd say it's a good starter model, I haven't had to mess with it much.

The FDA Report

When discussing this subject with people marginally familiar with the media attention given to e-cigarettes recently, the subject of the recent FDA analysis of a very small subset of liquid nicotine products available on the open market always comes up.  In most articles about the subject, the most "damning" aspects of the report are featured front and center.  Since part of this blog is to defuse the FUD surrounding e-cigarettes, I will give you a brief rebuttal to the report followed by a link to a more thorough analysis.

I found the article referenced in the previous post, courtesy of "Lucky Kitty" over at e-cigarette-forum.com.

Another gem from the NIH:

Long-term effects of inhaled nicotine.

Waldum HL, Nilsen OG, Nilsen T, Rørvik H, Syversen V, Sanvik AK, Haugen OA, Torp SH, Brenna E.

Department of Medicine, University Hospital, Tronheim, Norway.

Tobacco smoking has been reported to be associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer, particularly of the lungs. In spite of extensive research on the health effects of tobacco smoking, the substances in tobacco smoke exerting these negative health effects are not completely known. Nicotine is the substance giving the subjective pleasure of smoking as well as inducing addiction. For the first time we report the effect on the rat of long-term (two years) inhalation of nicotine.

Propylene Glycol as inhaled germicide

It's possible that "vaping" (I still can't not use quotes) may have more benefits than I initially anticipated.  It seems that the carrier - propylene glycol - may act as an inhaled germicide, giving me protection from various forms of lung illness.  I asked around a bit on the forums I frequent, and found several anecdotal reports of "everyone else got sick but me."

Genius!

The article referenced above discusses an experiment that involved immersing various animals in a propylene glycol mist, 24/7, for several years.  They did not appear to suffer any harm from this.

I've also got another study of a similar thing done to rats, except with nicotine mist.  They also did not suffer ill effects beyond minor weight loss.  I'll see if I can dig that up later.

From the NIH (link):

Mr. A, a 43-year-old white man, was self-referred in June 2006 for an ADHD evaluation. Although he had symptoms of depression and anxiety, he only fulfilled DSM-IV-TR criteria for ADHD. Mr. A had been taking metoprolol (50 mg daily) for mild hypertension for several years, and after evaluation in our facility in 2006, he began medication trials with amphetamine mixed salts (10 mg 3 times daily), methyl-phenidate (36 mg), and bupropion (150 mg). He experienced marked irritability; each stimulant needed to be discontinued within a couple of days, and the bupropion was stopped within 3 weeks of starting. Mr. A then began a trial using the 7 mg trans-dermal nicotine patch from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Monday through Friday, and on weekends as needed. 

Apparently, smokers don't self-administer pure nicotine. This could explain the high failure rates for passive NRT.

This article further bolsters my belief that pure nicotine is not significantly addictive.

So far my own experience is bearing this out. I never feel the "need" to 'vape' (I don't feel comfortable with that term yet, somehow). I forget to do so for hours at a time. In fact, for me the primary motivation seems to come from my existing desire to munch on things, or needing something to fiddle with.

Wow

Who knew? If you aren't savvy, there is a strange backlash against e-cigarettes by prosecutors, state governments, and the federal government. They cite a (seriously misconstrued) study by the FDA to suggest banning these devices. Furthermore, they suggest that because they are sold with flavorings that they are being targeted at children. Only children like flavorings, it seems.

Luckily, the e-cigarette "movement" is very quickly growing and gaining traction - mostly by angry ex-smokers who don't want to be denied this "lesser of two evils", lest they be tempted back to "crude plant matter".

Interesting times. The heavily cultivated anti-smoker sentiment is coming to bear on e-cigarettes, which only bear a vague resemblance to tobacco, excluding all of the reasons "analog" cigarettes are vilified for in the first instance. The association with tobacco is strong, I suppose this is why there is a suggestion in the e-cigarette community to distance this product from the word "cigarette", preferring instead "personal vaporizer".

I don't know how helpful that will be though. When I think "personal vaporizer" I think of some form of drug paraphernalia.