Thought I would include this Press Release from Tesco UK. With electronic cigarettes now available in many high street shops, this is yet  more evidence to show that electronic cigarettes and vaping are slowly becoming more mainstream.

50 years on: TESCO Launches VAPESTICK Electronic Cigarettes in all Pharmacies

Almost 50 years ago to the day, the Royal College of Physicians published their seismic survey on smoking and health which, for the first time, confirmed the connection between death and smoking–related diseases. At the time the Report caused hysteria throughout the media and its effect on the UK’s social and economic structure is still being felt today.
It is a fact that over 100,000 smokers in the UK die each year from their habit, and yet it is estimated that there are still currently 10 million smokers in the UK alone.

Smokers have been urged by Governments to quit their habit using willpower or NRT (Nicotine Replacement Therapy) products. But In February 2012, a Study at Harvard University, regarding the effectiveness of NRT patches and gum, clearly demonstrated that ex-smokers relapse at equivalent rates, whether or not they used Nicotine Replacement Therapies to assist them in quitting.

Now, 50 years on from that RCP Survey, and in the same week as ‘National No Smoking Day’, TESCO – the UK’s largest Grocer – has formally launched the sale of VAPESTICK Electronic Cigarettes – an alternative to smoking tobacco – in all their UK Pharmacies.

Electronic Cigarettes have become increasingly popular over the past few years, attracting millions of users around the world. This rise in popularity has been driven by several highly compelling reasons to make the switch.

Firstly, they are far healthier than smoking tobacco. Every Scientist, Doctor and independent Study that has so far considered these products has confirmed that electronic cigarettes are far healthier than their tobacco counterparts. Whilst they still contain nicotine (in whatever strength the user prefers), they contain no tar, or carbon monoxide, or ammonia, or any of the other thousands of toxins found in tobacco smoke. Instead of tobacco smoke, the user inhales and exhales a water-based vapour which delivers a similar sensation to that of tobacco smoke.

Electronic cigarettes are also far less expensive than tobacco, with users able to save as much as 75% over the cost of normal cigarettes, and they also do not fall foul of the UK smoking ban, so they can legally be used anywhere.

In September 2011, the UK Government’s Behavioural Insights Team or “Nudge Unit”, said they wanted to encourage smokers to try electronic cigarettes. They said, “If alternative and safe nicotine products can be developed which are attractive enough to substitute people away from traditional cigarettes, they could have the potential to save 10,000’s of lives a year”.

Last week, Professor John Britton, Director of the UK Centre for Tobacco Control Studies said (on BBC Radio 4’s ‘Inside Health’ programme): “We’ve got 10 million smokers in the UK and half of them, some 5 million people, are going to die if they don’t stop smoking…this is a massive health problem. These electronic cigarettes, if they can provide an alternative that is acceptable to a proportion of those smokers, potentially have a lot to offer public health.”

Until recently, electronic cigarettes have been available mainly through on-line retailers and mail order catalogues. This has put them under-the-radar of many UK smokers who are keen to give up, but have not yet managed to find a successful aide to doing so. With “National No Smoking Day” on March 14th, VAPESTICK products will be sold on TESCO Pharmacy shelves, as a healthier alternative for smokers to now consider.

VAPESTICK becomes the first electronic cigarette brand to be formally stocked and supplied by the Pharmacies at the UK’s largest Grocer. A founding board member of ECITA – the (European) Electronic Cigarette Industry Trade Association – which ensures its members comply with strict guidelines regarding product safety, certification and testing – VAPESTICK has concentrated on developing its products to the highest possible standards, resulting in a wide portfolio of high quality and well-designed electronic cigarette products and accessories to meet the needs of smokers.

Michael Clapper, Co-Founder and Chairman at VAPESTICK said: “After years of hard work in creating these products, we could not be more excited about the launch in TESCO Pharmacies across the country. I think it shows a real commitment by TESCO, not only to us, but also to the on-going health and well-being of their smoking customers who have been searching for a healthier alternative. They can now find one, right on their doorsteps, at their local TESCO Pharmacy. We are confident that our products are precisely what UK smokers have been looking for, giving them the opportunity to make a healthier choice for both themselves and their families”.

An intensive and sustained marketing campaign will be supporting the launch of VAPESTICK products in TESCO, including customer sampling around the UK, a
nationwide radio campaign and promotional in-store offers

From: http://www.metro.co.uk/lifestyle/892692-try-electronic-cigarettes-for-fags-without-the-drag#ixzz1p7wYtxjv

It’s No Smoking Day on Wednesday. If you can’t give it up altogether, perhaps consider switching to a less toxic electronic cigarette.

Smoking kills nearly six million people a year worldwide. That’s one person every six seconds, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), which is why it is calling the tobacco epidemic one of the biggest public health threats the world has faced.

We all know the dangers of lighting up. Those little white sticks contain more than just an addictive hit of nicotine; there’s everything from tobacco and tar to carbon monoxide and even rat poison.

Dr Anuradha Arasu says there are 4,000 different chemicals in just one cigarette, 50 of which are known to be carcinogens capable of causing cancer.

‘Nicotine is one of the most addictive substances because it is one of the most dependency-inducing,’ she says. ‘Over time, your body will require more and more to produce the same effect.’

Figures from the Office for National Statistics say two-thirds of smokers in Britain would like to quit. However, despite the numerous nicotine-replacement therapies on the market, including patches, gum and inhalers, it’s not that easy.

Since the invention of the e-cigarette in 2003, many have been using it to quit. A study by doctors in South Africa in 2009 found that 45 per cent of smokers using the e-cigarette were able to quit tobacco cigarettes within two months.

E-cigarettes are free from most of the chemicals found in a normal cigarette. They are the same size and shape as a normal cigarette and a typical design will consist of three different components: a lithium battery, an atomiser and a cartridge containing nicotine. It works by turning the nicotine into a vapour and it is this that is inhaled by the user. E-Lites, an e-cigarette brand, reported a 400 per cent sales increase last year.

Legally, e-cigarettes are not classed as a stop-smoking product and the Electronic Cigarette Industry Trade Association (ECITA) is quick to point this out.

‘We are legally prohibited from describing them as “quit smoking” products,’ says Katherine Devlin from the ECITA. ‘To do so classifies them as a medicinal product – which they are not – and would need a marketing authorisation from the UK Medicines And Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency [MHRA]. They are simply a safer and healthier alternative to tobacco smoking.’

Since smoking-related diseases cost the NHS £2.7billion each year in Britain, it’s about time a healthier alternative came on to the market. But it seems e-cigarettes could be more than that: they could also help you quit nicotine altogether.

Landlord Neal Zarkovic, 29, started smoking when he was 17. He chose to switch to e-cigarettes because he thought they’d be healthier. He had tried to quit smoking several times but had never lasted more than a month using patches.

‘I missed the hand-to-mouth action and the habit too much,’ he says.

After switching to e-cigarettes, Zarkovic says he would puff away whenever he fancied it and for about two months was quite content. However, he noticed he was ‘smoking’ less and less. ‘It got to 8pm some days and I’d realise I’d not had a puff,’ Zarkovic says. ‘So I deliberately left the empty cartridge in so it was just the habit of smoking until I stopped altogether.’

Giving up is always hard and, for those who have tried many times, maybe it’s time to switch to a safer alternative. You might get lucky and end up quitting without having to try.

Read more: http://www.metro.co.uk/lifestyle/892692-try-electronic-cigarettes-for-fags-without-the-drag#ixzz1p7wylQrm