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ROB MCCLENDON: WELL ACCORDING TO THE OKLAHOMA STATE DEPARTMENT OF
HEALTH, OKLAHOMA RANKS THIRTY-NINTH IN THE NATION FOR ADULT SMOKING COMPARED
TO FORTY-SEVENTH IN THE NATION JUST ONE YEAR AGO, A DROP THAT SHOWS THE
PERCENTAGE OF ADULT SMOKERS IN THE STATE DECREASING FROM TWENTY-SIX
TO TWENTY-THREE PERCENT.
GOOD NEWS THAT SOME BELIEVE CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES.
JOINING ME NOW IS OUR ANDY BARTH.
ANDY BARTH: WELL ROB, E-CIGARETTES WERE MADE POPULAR IN CHINA AND WERE
INTRODUCED TO THE U S IN 2006.
AND WHILE SOME WORRY ABOUT THE LONG-TERM EFFECTS, MANY SMOKERS ARE TURNING
TO THESE TOBACCO-FREE DEVICES TO HELP CURB AN ADDICTIVE HABIT.
FORGET THE HEAT AND OFFENSIVE ODOR.
ELECTRONIC CIGARETTES ARE A BOOMING TREND THAT THE MANAGER OF VAPOR KINGS,
JOSEPH RICHARDSON, SAYS COULD BE THE END OF THE PACK-A-DAY HABIT.
JOSEPH RICHARDSON: I THINK PEOPLE WANT TO STOP SMOKING, OR YOU KNOW FIND
AN ALTERNATIVE.
ANDY: WHICH COULDN'T BE TRUER FOR RHONDA HOGSETT.
RHONDA HOGSETT: I HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH CANCER.
AND I'VE BEEN A SMOKER FOR APPROXIMATELY TEN YEARS.
I'VE JUST REALLY STARTED BEGINNING TO DO THE VAPOR.
ANDY: A NEW HABIT HOGSETT PLANS TO KICK WITH TIME.
HOGSETT: MY END GOAL IS JUST GOING TO BE TO WEAN MYSELF OFF OF IT.
ANDY: AND FOR HER SISTER DEAUNNA THOMAS, SHE TOO SWITCHED TO E-CIGARETTES
FOR HEALTH REASONS.
DEAUNNA THOMAS: I HAVE EMPHYSEMA, FOR ONE.
AND, MY HUSBAND RECORDED ME BREATHING ONE NIGHT, AND WHEN I HEARD IT THE
NEXT DAY IT KIND OF FREAKED ME OUT.
ANDY: AND AFTER ONLY DAYS OF USING THE E-CIGARETTE, THOMAS SAYS HER BREATHING
IMPROVED.
YET SHE STILL SHARES HER SISTER'S FINAL GOAL.
THOMAS: I'M STILL GETTING THE NICOTINE, BUT WE'RE CUTTING DOWN.
I HAVEN'T SMOKED IN TWO AND A HALF WEEKS AND I HAVEN'T KILLED ANYBODY
(LAUGHS).
ANDY: CURRENTLY THE FDA DOESN'T REGULATE E-CIGARETTES AND PUTS THEM
IN THE SAME CATEGORY OF REGULAR CIGARETTES, BUT RICHARDSON SAYS THERE ARE
BENEFITS TO INHALING THE VAPOR.
RICHARDSON: THERE IS QUITE A FEW CHEMICALS IN A CIGARETTE, THAT WE KNOW IS
PRESENT IN A CIGARETTE, THAT YOU DON'T WANT TO INHALE.
AND I THINK THAT ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE DRIVING THE SALES, DRIVING THE
NEED TO SWITCH OVER.
ANDY: YET DESPITE THE OVERWHELMING RISE IN E-CIGARETTE POPULARITY,
HEALTH CONCERNS STILL LINGER, WHICH IS WHY OKLAHOMA LAWMAKERS HELD AN
INTERIM STUDY TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PRODUCT.
DAVID DERBY: OBVIOUSLY FIRST AND FOREMOST, DON'T EVER SMOKE.
ANDY: REPRESENTATIVE DAVID DERBY CO-CHAIRED THE INTERIM STUDY AND SAYS
THERE COULD BE A POSITIVE SIDE TO E-CIGARETTES.
DERBY: IF YOU ARE A SMOKER AND WANT TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT TO YOUR
LIFESTYLE AND ACTUALLY WEAN YOURSELF DOWN, THEN YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO
DO THAT.
ANDY: YET REGARDLESS OF THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS, DR JOEL NITZKIN SAYS AGE
RESTRICTIONS SHOULD APPLY TO E-CIGARETTES JUST AS THEY DO TO TRADITIONAL
CIGARETTES.
JOEL NITZKIN: THE SAME AGE RESTRICTIONS SHOULD BE ACROSS ALL NICOTINE
DELIVERY PRODUCTS.
ANDY: WHICH IS SOMETHING RICHARDSON IS IN FAVOR OF.
RICHARDSON: AT VAPOR KINGS, WE HAVE A POLICY OF NOT SELLING TO ANYONE
UNDER EIGHTEEN.
AND WE CARD ANYBODY THAT LOOKS REMOTELY EIGHTEEN.
ANDY: AND FOR THOMAS, INHALING THE VAPOR IS HEALTHIER THAN TOBACCO.
THOMAS: IT CAN'T HURT.
I MEAN, IT'S GOT TO BE BETTER FOR YOU THAN ALL THE TARS AND ALL THE CRUD
THAT GOES INTO YOUR LUNGS.
RICHARDSON: I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR PEOPLE TO CREATE A DISCONNECT
BETWEEN THIS AND SMOKING.
IN ALMOST EVERY ASPECT OTHER THAN HAVING NICOTINE IN IT, IT IS NOT LIKE A
CIGARETTE.
ANDY: NOW THERE ARE FIVE INGREDIENTS IN AN E-CIGARETTE; PROPYLENE
GLYCOL WHICH IS USED AS A FOOD PRESERVATIVE; THE SECOND IS VEGETABLE
GLYCERIN, USED IN PHARMACEUTICAL FORMULATIONS; THE THIRD IS
U S FOOD-GRADE FLAVORING; THE FOURTH IS DISTILLED WATER; AND OF, COURSE
THERE IS NICOTINE.
AND WHILE THE ACTUAL DEVICES ARE NOT FDA REGULATED, EACH OF THE
INGREDIENTS IS.
ROB: SO ANDY, WHILE IT APPEARS THAT THERE COULD BE SOME HEALTH BENEFITS.
WHAT OTHER REASONS WOULD SOMEONE WANT TO SWITCH TO AN E-CIGARETTE?
ANDY: WELL ROB, PROPONENTS OF E-CIGARETTES SAY ASIDE FROM THE ABSENCE OF
TOBACCO AND OTHER CARCINOGENS, E-CIGARETTES ARE MORE COST EFFECTIVE
THAN TRADITIONAL CIGARETTES.
NOW, CONSIDER THIS; THE AVERAGE COST OF A PACK OF CIGARETTES IN THE U S IS
AROUND SIX DOLLARS.
NOW IF A SMOKER GOES THROUGH A PACK A DAY, THE ANNUAL COST IS ABOUT 2,100
DOLLARS.
NOW IN COMPARISON, IF THAT SAME SMOKER SWITCHES TO E-CIGARETTES FOR ONE YEAR,
THEY WOULD ONLY PAY 846 DOLLARS.
ROB: SO ARE E-CIGARETTES, ARE THEY ALLOWED IN NON-SMOKING AREAS?
ANDY: WELL ROB, GOVERNOR FALLIN BANNED THE USE OF ANY NICOTINE PRODUCT ON
STATE PROPERTY, AND OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY PROHIBITS THEM AS WELL.
NOW THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA ALLOWS THEM ON CAMPUS AS LONG AS THEY ARE
USED OUTDOORS.
AND OTHER THAN THAT, IT REALLY DEPENDS ON THE ESTABLISHMENT THAT YOU ARE
IN.
ROB: ALRIGHT, IT WILL BE INTERESTING WHAT THE LEGISLATURE DECIDES.
THANK YOU SO MUCH ANDY.
ANDY: YOU'RE WELCOME ROB.