Telegraph - Bryony Gordon 9th Dec 2016

[laksakite]

(from The Telegraph)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/health/people-say-e-cigarettes-can-cure-smoking-addiction-lying/



People who say e-cigarettes can cure a smoking addiction are only lying to themselves

· BRYONY GORDON

When social historians look back at the early 21st Century to try to work out what its most loathsome invention was, will it be social media?

Will it be Twitter trolls and selfies, Facebook likes and Snapchat filters? Will it be the 'alt-right’, that curious band of creatures elevated from cretins to members of the commentariat? Will it be the rise of dreadful portmanteaus such as Brangelina, Brexit and now Brex-Pitt? Will it be television shows like I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here and The Apprentice, because we can also partially blame that on the rise of Donald Trump? How about smartphones? They’re a good one, for making us so dumb that it is now acceptable to walk out into a road full of traffic without actually looking where we are going.

I suppose it’s perfectly possible that when the good people of 2100 look back on our achievements and creations so that they can come up with one of those hilarious list shows - beamed straight into our heads via Apple Thought Control - that all of these things will easily make the top ten. But for me, right now, sitting as I am at the tail end of 2016 and all the myriad horrors it has offered us, there is only one clear winner. And that is the e-cigarette.

I know, I know. Way to go, demonising a product that has helped many millions of people to quit smoking actual cigarettes. I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve watched a 30-a-day friend stand at a party chuffing on what looks like a geiger counter, waxing lyrical about how vaping has changed their life. “I haven’t had a fag for a year and a half!” they say, desperately sucking on their e-ciggie. “I feel so great! So free from the tyranny of smoking!” At least I think they say this. I can’t be 100 per cent sure given that all conversations take place as the vaper inhales so deeply you might initially confuse them for someone in the throes of an asthma attack.

I’m always a little sceptical when a product is touted as a near-identical but healthy alternative to something that can kill you. I know that Public Health England support the use of e-cigarettes, even going as far as to say that they carry a fraction of the risk of actual cigarettes, but I’m not sure they are really dealing with the addictive nature of smoking. It’s like the fabled promise of hangover-free alcohol, which scientists say will be the norm by 2050. Personally, I think it’s pretty good that excessive amounts of booze make you feel awful - some might argue it was nature’s way of preventing you from stumbling around permanently pickled. If it looks too good to be true then it probably is too good to be true. I don’t want to be a complete killjoy slap bang in the middle of the festive period, but if you want a healthy alternative to cigarettes and alcohol... then, don’t smoke cigarettes or drink too much alcohol.

This week, the US Surgeon General branded e-cigarettes 'a major public health concern’. Dr Vivek Murthy released a report in which he said that they were a gateway to smoking for teenagers, who can become hooked on nicotine after as little as one to three days of it a month. The document also raises concerns about the effect of nicotine on an adolescent’s developing brain. “E-cigarette use among youth and young adults is associated with the use of other tobacco products, including conventional cigarettes,” writes Dr Murthy. “Because most tobacco use is established during adolescence, actions to prevent young people from the potential of nicotine addiction are critical.”

Here’s the thing about e-cigarettes. They may not have any of the tobacco or tar that your average Marlboro Red packs, but they’ve got all the nicotine, and nicotine is the thing that makes quitting the gaspers so damn difficult in the first place. It’s the thing that makes you want to scratch your eyeballs out a week into quitting cigarettes. It’s the thing that makes you want to scratch someone else’s eyeballs out when they tell you that you can do it, you can give up smoking. But if you are using e-cigarettes, you are no more an ex-smoker than a heroin addict using methadone is free of the curses of drug addiction.

The problem I have with e-cigarettes is that they take addiction to a toxic chemical, make it smell like bubblegum and then blow it in your face as a healthier alternative to lung cancer and emphysema. But breaking a leg is a healthier alternative to lung cancer and emphysema, and I don’t much fancy that either. People who vape do so under the pernicious belief that they are improving themselves, when in actual fact they’re as in thrall to the industry that thrives on nicotine as they were before.

At least cigarettes do what they say on the packet. Vaping is not a panacea. It’s just a way of burying your head in a cloud of strawberry-scented smoke, and carrying on regardless. Like so much of the 21st Century, e-cigarettes are all about avoiding the truth.

 

[Greebo]

 

[SirLugg]

What a cunt.

 

[Tubbyengineer]

Someone on there was touting the wonders of Champix - so I replied with this little gem...
For Healthcare Professionals
Applies to varenicline: oral tablet

Gastrointestinal
Very common (10% or more): Nausea (up to 30%)
Common (1% to 10%): Abdominal pain, flatulence, dyspepsia, vomiting, constipation, GI reflux disease, dry mouth, abdominal pain, diarrhea, abdominal distension, toothache, flatulence
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Hematochezia, gastritis, change of bowel habit, eructation, aphthous stomatitis, gingival pain, dysphagia, enterocolitis, esophagitis, GI hemorrhage, mouth ulceration
Rare (less than 0.1%): Hematemesis, abnormal feces, tongue coated, gastric ulcer, intestinal obstruction, acute pancreatitis
Frequency not reported: Gall bladder disease[Ref]

Psychiatric
Very common (10% or more): Abnormal dreams, insomnia
Common (1% to 10%): Sleep disorder, nightmare
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Panic reaction, thinking abnormal, restlessness, mood swings, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, libido increased, libido decreased, irritability, aggression, agitation, disorientation, dissociation
Rare (less than 0.1%): Dysphoria, bradyphrenia, manic episode
Frequency not reported: Suicidal ideation, psychosis, abnormal behavior, somnambulism[Ref]

Nervous system
Very common (10% or more): Headache (up to 19%)
Common (1% to 10%): Somnolence, dizziness, dysgeusia
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Seizure, tremor, lethargy, hypoesthesia, amnesia, parosmia, psychomotor hyperactivity, restless legs syndrome, syncope, tremor, balance disorder convulsion, facial palsy
Rare (less than 0.1%): Cerebrovascular accident, hypertonia, dysarthria, coordination abnormal, hypogeusia, circadian rhythm sleep disorder[Ref]

Respiratory
Very common (10% or more): Nasopharyngitis
Common (1% to 10%): Bronchitis, sinusitis, dyspnea, cough
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Upper respiratory tract inflammation, respiratory tract congestion, dysphonia, rhinitis allergic, throat irritation, sinus congestion, upper- airway cough syndrome, rhinorrhea, hoarseness, asthma, pleurisy, postnasal drip, epistaxis
Rare (less than 0.1%): Laryngeal pain, snoring[Ref]

Dermatologic
Common (1% to 10%): Rash, pruritus
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Erythema, acne, hyperhidrosis, night sweats, acne, dermatitis, dry skin, eczema, psoriasis, urticaria, photosensitivity
Frequency not reported: Severe cutaneous reactions, including Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Erythema Multiforme, angioedema[Ref]

Metabolic
Common (1% to 10%): Weight increased, decreased appetite, increased appetite, anorexia
Rare (less than 0.1%): Polydipsia, C-reactive protein increased, blood calcium decreased
Frequency not reported: Diabetes mellitus, hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, hyperkalemia, hypoglycemia[Ref]

Hematologic
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Anemia, lymphadenopathy, blood calcium decreased
Rare (less than 0.1%): Platelet count decreased, leukocytosis, splenomegaly, thrombocytopenia[Ref]

Cardiovascular
Common (1% to 10%): Chest pain
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Angina pectoris, tachycardia, palpitations, heart rate increased, hypertension, hot flush, chest discomfort, arrhythmia, bradycardia, ventricular extrasystoles
Rare (less than 0.1%): Atrial fibrillation, electrocardiogram ST segment depression, electrocardiogram T wave amplitude decreased, acute coronary syndrome, cardiac flutter, cor pulmonale, coronary artery disease
Frequency not reported: Myocardial infarction, hypotension, peripheral ischemia[Ref]

Endocrine
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Thyroid gland disorders, diabetes mellitus
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Pituitary hemorrhage[Ref]

Ocular
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Conjunctivitis, eye pain, dry eye, eye irritation, vision blurred, visual disturbance
Rare (less than 0.1%): Scotoma, scleral discoloration, mydriasis, photophobia, myopia, lacrimation increased, acquired night blindness, blindness transient, cataract subcapsular, ocular vascular disorder, photophobia, vitreous floaters[Ref]

Hypersensitivity
Common (1% to 10%): Seasonal allergy[Ref]

Genitourinary
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Pollakiuria, nocturia, menorrhagia
Rare (less than 0.1%): Glycosuria, polyuria, vaginal discharge, sexual dysfunction Frequency not reported: Abnormal urine analysis, polyuria, urine abnormality, urinary retention, menstrual disorder, erectile dysfunction[Ref]

Musculoskeletal
Common (1% to 10%): Arthralgia, myalgia, back pain
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Muscle spasms, musculoskeletal chest pain, arthritis, osteoporosis
Rare (less than 0.1%): Joint stiffness, costochondritis, asthenia[Ref]

Renal
Frequency not reported: Nephrolithiasis, urethral syndrome, acute renal failure[Ref]

Immunologic
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Fungal infection, viral infection, influenza like illness[Ref]

Hepatic
Common (1% to 10%): Liver function test abnormal[Ref]

Other
Common (1% to 10%): Fatigue
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Tinnitus, pyrexia, asthenia, malaise
Rare (less than 0.1%): Feeling cold, cyst, semen analysis abnormal, deafness, Meniere's disease, thirst

 

[SirLugg]

Someone on there was touting the wonders of Champix - so I replied with this little gem...
For Healthcare Professionals
Applies to varenicline: oral tablet

Gastrointestinal
Very common (10% or more): Nausea (up to 30%)
Common (1% to 10%): Abdominal pain, flatulence, dyspepsia, vomiting, constipation, GI reflux disease, dry mouth, abdominal pain, diarrhea, abdominal distension, toothache, flatulence
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Hematochezia, gastritis, change of bowel habit, eructation, aphthous stomatitis, gingival pain, dysphagia, enterocolitis, esophagitis, GI hemorrhage, mouth ulceration
Rare (less than 0.1%): Hematemesis, abnormal feces, tongue coated, gastric ulcer, intestinal obstruction, acute pancreatitis
Frequency not reported: Gall bladder disease[Ref]

Psychiatric
Very common (10% or more): Abnormal dreams, insomnia
Common (1% to 10%): Sleep disorder, nightmare
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Panic reaction, thinking abnormal, restlessness, mood swings, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, libido increased, libido decreased, irritability, aggression, agitation, disorientation, dissociation
Rare (less than 0.1%): Dysphoria, bradyphrenia, manic episode
Frequency not reported: Suicidal ideation, psychosis, abnormal behavior, somnambulism[Ref]

Nervous system
Very common (10% or more): Headache (up to 19%)
Common (1% to 10%): Somnolence, dizziness, dysgeusia
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Seizure, tremor, lethargy, hypoesthesia, amnesia, parosmia, psychomotor hyperactivity, restless legs syndrome, syncope, tremor, balance disorder convulsion, facial palsy
Rare (less than 0.1%): Cerebrovascular accident, hypertonia, dysarthria, coordination abnormal, hypogeusia, circadian rhythm sleep disorder[Ref]

Respiratory
Very common (10% or more): Nasopharyngitis
Common (1% to 10%): Bronchitis, sinusitis, dyspnea, cough
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Upper respiratory tract inflammation, respiratory tract congestion, dysphonia, rhinitis allergic, throat irritation, sinus congestion, upper- airway cough syndrome, rhinorrhea, hoarseness, asthma, pleurisy, postnasal drip, epistaxis
Rare (less than 0.1%): Laryngeal pain, snoring[Ref]

Dermatologic
Common (1% to 10%): Rash, pruritus
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Erythema, acne, hyperhidrosis, night sweats, acne, dermatitis, dry skin, eczema, psoriasis, urticaria, photosensitivity
Frequency not reported: Severe cutaneous reactions, including Stevens Johnson Syndrome and Erythema Multiforme, angioedema[Ref]

Metabolic
Common (1% to 10%): Weight increased, decreased appetite, increased appetite, anorexia
Rare (less than 0.1%): Polydipsia, C-reactive protein increased, blood calcium decreased
Frequency not reported: Diabetes mellitus, hyperglycemia, hyperlipidemia, hyperkalemia, hypoglycemia[Ref]

Hematologic
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Anemia, lymphadenopathy, blood calcium decreased
Rare (less than 0.1%): Platelet count decreased, leukocytosis, splenomegaly, thrombocytopenia[Ref]

Cardiovascular
Common (1% to 10%): Chest pain
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Angina pectoris, tachycardia, palpitations, heart rate increased, hypertension, hot flush, chest discomfort, arrhythmia, bradycardia, ventricular extrasystoles
Rare (less than 0.1%): Atrial fibrillation, electrocardiogram ST segment depression, electrocardiogram T wave amplitude decreased, acute coronary syndrome, cardiac flutter, cor pulmonale, coronary artery disease
Frequency not reported: Myocardial infarction, hypotension, peripheral ischemia[Ref]

Endocrine
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Thyroid gland disorders, diabetes mellitus
Very rare (less than 0.01%): Pituitary hemorrhage[Ref]

Ocular
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Conjunctivitis, eye pain, dry eye, eye irritation, vision blurred, visual disturbance
Rare (less than 0.1%): Scotoma, scleral discoloration, mydriasis, photophobia, myopia, lacrimation increased, acquired night blindness, blindness transient, cataract subcapsular, ocular vascular disorder, photophobia, vitreous floaters[Ref]

Hypersensitivity
Common (1% to 10%): Seasonal allergy[Ref]

Genitourinary
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Pollakiuria, nocturia, menorrhagia
Rare (less than 0.1%): Glycosuria, polyuria, vaginal discharge, sexual dysfunction Frequency not reported: Abnormal urine analysis, polyuria, urine abnormality, urinary retention, menstrual disorder, erectile dysfunction[Ref]

Musculoskeletal
Common (1% to 10%): Arthralgia, myalgia, back pain
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Muscle spasms, musculoskeletal chest pain, arthritis, osteoporosis
Rare (less than 0.1%): Joint stiffness, costochondritis, asthenia[Ref]

Renal
Frequency not reported: Nephrolithiasis, urethral syndrome, acute renal failure[Ref]

Immunologic
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Fungal infection, viral infection, influenza like illness[Ref]

Hepatic
Common (1% to 10%): Liver function test abnormal[Ref]

Other
Common (1% to 10%): Fatigue
Uncommon (0.1% to 1%): Tinnitus, pyrexia, asthenia, malaise
Rare (less than 0.1%): Feeling cold, cyst, semen analysis abnormal, deafness, Meniere's disease, thirst

Champix was one of the methods I tried before vaping.
All jesting aside on week three I lost my shit-went absolute batshit crazy and very, very aggressive. For no apparent reason, so the doc took me off them.
Dangerous shit. And these pricks peddle it.

 

[mannikon]

This Bryony Wotsit is not a journalist, she's a party girl gossip columnist. Who cares what she writes?

 

[Greebo]

So she gets paid to get pissed then write this shite. I hate her even more now.

 

[mannikon]

And she eats like a horse and gets paid to write as a fat ambassador apparently (why am I reading about her ? FML)

 

[Chris Hall]

(from The Telegraph)

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/health/people-say-e-cigarettes-can-cure-smoking-addiction-lying/



People who say e-cigarettes can cure a smoking addiction are only lying to themselves

· BRYONY GORDON

When social historians look back at the early 21st Century to try to work out what its most loathsome invention was, will it be social media?

Will it be Twitter trolls and selfies, Facebook likes and Snapchat filters? Will it be the 'alt-right’, that curious band of creatures elevated from cretins to members of the commentariat? Will it be the rise of dreadful portmanteaus such as Brangelina, Brexit and now Brex-Pitt? Will it be television shows like I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here and The Apprentice, because we can also partially blame that on the rise of Donald Trump? How about smartphones? They’re a good one, for making us so dumb that it is now acceptable to walk out into a road full of traffic without actually looking where we are going.

I suppose it’s perfectly possible that when the good people of 2100 look back on our achievements and creations so that they can come up with one of those hilarious list shows - beamed straight into our heads via Apple Thought Control - that all of these things will easily make the top ten. But for me, right now, sitting as I am at the tail end of 2016 and all the myriad horrors it has offered us, there is only one clear winner. And that is the e-cigarette.

I know, I know. Way to go, demonising a product that has helped many millions of people to quit smoking actual cigarettes. I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve watched a 30-a-day friend stand at a party chuffing on what looks like a geiger counter, waxing lyrical about how vaping has changed their life. “I haven’t had a fag for a year and a half!” they say, desperately sucking on their e-ciggie. “I feel so great! So free from the tyranny of smoking!” At least I think they say this. I can’t be 100 per cent sure given that all conversations take place as the vaper inhales so deeply you might initially confuse them for someone in the throes of an asthma attack.

I’m always a little sceptical when a product is touted as a near-identical but healthy alternative to something that can kill you. I know that Public Health England support the use of e-cigarettes, even going as far as to say that they carry a fraction of the risk of actual cigarettes, but I’m not sure they are really dealing with the addictive nature of smoking. It’s like the fabled promise of hangover-free alcohol, which scientists say will be the norm by 2050. Personally, I think it’s pretty good that excessive amounts of booze make you feel awful - some might argue it was nature’s way of preventing you from stumbling around permanently pickled. If it looks too good to be true then it probably is too good to be true. I don’t want to be a complete killjoy slap bang in the middle of the festive period, but if you want a healthy alternative to cigarettes and alcohol... then, don’t smoke cigarettes or drink too much alcohol.

This week, the US Surgeon General branded e-cigarettes 'a major public health concern’. Dr Vivek Murthy released a report in which he said that they were a gateway to smoking for teenagers, who can become hooked on nicotine after as little as one to three days of it a month. The document also raises concerns about the effect of nicotine on an adolescent’s developing brain. “E-cigarette use among youth and young adults is associated with the use of other tobacco products, including conventional cigarettes,” writes Dr Murthy. “Because most tobacco use is established during adolescence, actions to prevent young people from the potential of nicotine addiction are critical.”

Here’s the thing about e-cigarettes. They may not have any of the tobacco or tar that your average Marlboro Red packs, but they’ve got all the nicotine, and nicotine is the thing that makes quitting the gaspers so damn difficult in the first place. It’s the thing that makes you want to scratch your eyeballs out a week into quitting cigarettes. It’s the thing that makes you want to scratch someone else’s eyeballs out when they tell you that you can do it, you can give up smoking. But if you are using e-cigarettes, you are no more an ex-smoker than a heroin addict using methadone is free of the curses of drug addiction.

The problem I have with e-cigarettes is that they take addiction to a toxic chemical, make it smell like bubblegum and then blow it in your face as a healthier alternative to lung cancer and emphysema. But breaking a leg is a healthier alternative to lung cancer and emphysema, and I don’t much fancy that either. People who vape do so under the pernicious belief that they are improving themselves, when in actual fact they’re as in thrall to the industry that thrives on nicotine as they were before.

At least cigarettes do what they say on the packet. Vaping is not a panacea. It’s just a way of burying your head in a cloud of strawberry-scented smoke, and carrying on regardless. Like so much of the 21st Century, e-cigarettes are all about avoiding the truth.

What a self righteous dick.

 

[HAZZA1962]

Silly Cow !!!