Q1.How harmful is vaping?

A1. Vaping is not very harmful at all. Vaping is different from smoking in that it doesn’t
contain dangerous chemicals like Tar, Carbon Monoxide, and MAOI’s that make smoking
more addictive. The great harms of smoking are not caused by nicotine but by the
combustion of tobacco that releases toxic chemicals like Carbon Monoxide in the
resulting smoke. Vaping has only a small fraction of the harm caused by combustible
cigarette smoking.

Q2. How bad is Nicotine Addiction (or Nicotine Dependance)?

A2. Nicotine Addiction is experienced most often by inveterate smokers, most of whom
would like to quit. Some of those addicted smokers have tried many times to quit and
failed with nicotine replacement therapies and pharmacotherapies. But many have
managed to quit by vaping instead. Nicotine Dependance is more often associated with
less frequent and lasting smoking or vaping such as youths that vape illegally. Both
Nicotine Addiction and Nicotine Dependance are not regarded as serious conditions
unless smoking is involved. Nicotine is a part of every Australians daily diet as it is found
in tomatoes, potatoes, cauliflower, eggplant and other nightshade family plants. If
nicotine was dangerous in low doses it would not be found in nicotine replacement
therapies (gum, lozenges ,patches and sprays) that are approved by the TGA in
Australia and available to anyone over the age of 12 years.

Q3. Why do Public Health and Tobacco Control “experts” hate vaping so much?

A3. Most Public Health “experts” are associated with Tobacco Control “experts” whose
jobs were to minimize the impact of tobacco on society. These groups did an admirable
job curtailing smoking rates in Australia until the advent of vaping. These groups mostly
rely on their income from Government and Non-government public health organisations
that derive most of their income from Government Tobacco excise and taxes. Vaping was
seen by these groups as a threat to both their relevance and income. Vaping was
conceived and developed independent of any Government, Public Health, Big Tobacco
or Big Pharma help, (never cost taxpayers a cent) and this was seen as being against
the principles of Tobacco “Control”.

Q4. How was vaping invented?

A4. A vaping device was fist invented around 1930 but never comercialised. In 2003 a
Chinese pharmacist named Hon Lik commercialised a vaping device to help him quit
smoking after his father died of lung cancer.

Q5. Is vaping “Cool”?

A5. Vaping is not regarded by most as being “cool” like the halcyon days of cigarette
smoking but many ex-smoking vapers would regard it as “cool” that they are healthy
again and living longer for their children and families. It doesn’t get much “cooler” than
that.

Q6. How is vaping demonized by Public Health, Tobacco Control and Media?

A6. Vaping is demonized by these groups primarily by linking it to the non-life-threatening
condition of nicotine addiction. This is mostly a hangover from when it was mistakenly
believed that nicotine (not smoking) was responsible for the death of smokers.

Q7. What is the “Precautionary Principle in vaping policy?

​

A7. The Precautionary Principle has been used by governments and Public Health
authorities to restrict or prohibit the sale and use of vaping devices until absolute safety
can be assured. Most people would understand that there are numerous things in
general life that are not absolutely safe. It is interesting to note that after all this time and
knowledge, the precautionary principle has not been enacted against tobacco smoking,
in fact, tobacco excise earns the Australian government 14 billion dollars a year and is
more accessible and less restricted than the safer alternative of vaping.

Q8. Is Australia an “outlier” in vaping policy?

A8. Australia is most certainly an outlier amongst Western countries in regard to vaping
policy. New Zealand, UK, Canada and the USA all have vaping policies that reflect the
harm reducing potential of vaping. These other countries have vaping policy models that
restrict vape sales to minors while allowing relatively easier access for smokers that
need it.

Q9. What rights do vapers have regarding their health?

A9. All Australians including smokers and vapers have an inalienable right to the best
health and the right to choose that pathway.

Q10. Is vaping better for health than smoking?

A10. Public Health England stated in a report in 2015 that e-cigarettes are 95% less
harmful than tobacco cigarettes. That report has been reviewed every year since with no
change in stance.

Q11. Can vapers get “Popcorn Lung”?

A11. There has never been a case of popcorn lung (bronchiolitis obliterans) in any
smoker or vaper. Popcorn lung killed a group of popcorn factory workers in the US who
were coating popcorn with a sweet tasting chemical called Diacetyl. Diacetyl is not used
as a flavouring additive in e-cigarettes. Diacetyl is present in cigarette smoke at
hundreds more times in volume, but no smoker has ever been diagnosed with popcorn
lung.

Q12. Can Nicotine vapers get “EVALI”?

A12. No, EVALI (Electronic cigarette or Vaping use Associated Lung Injury) involved the
use of Vitamin E Acetate as a thickening agent in illicit THC vapes, particularly in US
states that prohibited cannabis use. 68 people died and thousands injured before an end
was put to it. Vitamin E Acetate is not used in vape liquid for many reasons not the least
being that it is dangerous to lung health and does not naturally mix with vaping liquids.

Q13. How many people die from nicotine vaping compared to smoking?

A13. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in Australia taking the lives of
20,000 Australians year on year and 8 million per year worldwide. Vaping nicotine has
taken zero (none) lives worldwide in over 80 million users and 20 years of use.

Q14. How is vaping regulated in other western countries?
A14.

Q15. Does nicotine adversely affect the adolescent brain?

A15. Nicotine has never been proved to significantly harm the adolescent brain in any
human. Many of the worlds’ smokers began smoking in their teens (including the likes of

Albert Einstein) and no brain damage has been recorded. If it were true, there would
have been millions of cases in the history of smoking and vaping.

Q16. Is liquid nicotine dangerous?

A16. Liquid nicotine used in vaping devices is normally in doses lower than in a cigarette,
in the range of 1-20mg/mL. This makes vaping less addictive than smoking. Liquid
nicotine used by people mixing their own liquids can be more potent (usually 100mg/mL)
then diluted to usable strengths (usually 1-18 mg/mL). The 100mg/mL nicotine was
responsible for the death of a toddler in Victoria, Australia due to inattention by a parent.
A toddler has not yet developed a vomit reflex whereas adults would normally just vomit
if swallowing that concentration of liquid.

Q17. What are the ingredients in nicotine vaping e-liquid?

A17. The ingredients in e-liquid are simple, PG (Propylene Glycol), VG (Vegetable
Glycerin), Flavouring and maybe nicotine. Propylene Glycol is used in many medical and
food products to absorb extra water and maintain moisture. Vegetable Glycerin is used in
many pharmaceutical and food products. Both PG and VG are non-toxic organic
compounds and are regarded as safe for human consumption. The Flavouring used in e-
liquid are basically food flavourings, some of which are not used in e-liquid due to
possible toxic compounds in them.

Q18. Why do vaping liquids have tasteful flavours?

A18. Vaping liquids have tasteful flavours in them because it makes them more palatable
to the adult vaper. Tobacco flavours are not generally preferred by vapers because most
ex-smokers would want to distance themselves from the taste of tobacco.

Q19. Who is Elaine Keller?

A19. Elaine Keller, a fierce tobacco harm reduction advocate and cancer survivor said,
“Why is your concern about my ‘addiction’ to nicotine more important than my concern
about getting lung cancer?”

Q20. What is the “Gateway Effect” with regard to vaping?

A20. Anti-vaping protagonists often talk about vaping leading to smoking, or the
“gateway” to smoking. This has been debunked many times. As vaping increases in a
population, smoking decreases, therefore there is no gateway to smoking. Very few
would trade in their Colour TV for a Black & White one.

Q21. Why is there a huge “Black Market” for vaping and tobacco products in Australia?

A21. A Black Market first sprung up in Australia when then Health Minister Greg Hunt
tried to legislate to ban the import of nicotine. This resulted in the requirement for a
doctors’ prescription to import nicotine under the Personal Importation Scheme however,
a black market for nicotine vaping products started up. This black market has been
getting progressively worse as nicotine and vaping restrictions increase.

Q22. Who sold vaping products to children and youth in Australia?

A22. For the most part it was not legal, licenced specialist vape shops that sold vapes to
youth in Australia, the fines and loss of licence was too much of a risk to bare. It was the
illicit tobacconists, corner stores and black-market sellers that sold vapes to youths
including from social media sites.

​

Q23. Has it always been illegal to sell vaping products

to under 18-year-olds?

A23. It has always been illegal to sell vaping products to anyone under the age of 18
years in Australia. Like Tobacco and Alcohol products.

Q24. Why do we need to wait decades before we know whether vaping nicotine is harmful?

A24. We do not need to wait decades to know that vaping is far less harmful than
smoking tobacco. It took decades to find out that smoking caused lung cancer but with
advances in technology and with testing of blood, urine and saliva, we can tell that so far
there is little to be concerned about. 

Q25. Do pharmaceutical companies benefit from

smoking related disease?

A25. Yes, pharmaceutical companies benefit by selling medicines and therapies for
diseases caused by smoking. Pharmaceutical companies also make nicotine
replacement therapies that are far less effective than vaping. Pharmaceutical companies
donate a lot of money to health groups, universities, government and media that promote
anti-vaping propaganda.

Q26. Does alcohol or nicotine cause more harm in society?

A26. Alcohol causes far more harm in society than nicotine. Nicotine causes no
significant harm in society, other than addiction. Health authorities declared an epidemic
of vaping even though more teens were binge drinking alcohol.

Q27. Should vapers have to vape in smoking areas in

public places?

A27. No, the object of all tobacco legislation in Australia is to protect the public from
tobacco smoke, the government therefore has a duty of care to make sure that no vaper
(non-smoker) is subject to the harms of tobacco smoke.

Q28. Is vaping harmful to bystanders?

A28. Vaping has not been proven to harm either vapers or bystanders.

Q29. Is vaping effective for smoking cessation?

A29. Vaping is the most popular and effective smoking cessation method in the world
today.

Q30. Should people who have never smoked take up vaping?

A30. No, not because there is any significant harm to them, but because there is no
point. Vaping is promoted to adult smokers only as a safer alternative to smoking.

Q31. Who makes the most profit from tobacco cigarette sales?

A31. The Australian government make 14 billion dollars a year from tobacco excise and
taxes, it is income that they would no doubt need to protect.

Q32. What is the cardiovascular risk of vaping?

A32. The cardiovascular risk of vaping nicotine is less than 5% that of smoking.

Q33. What are the pulmonary risks of vaping?

A33. The pulmonary risks of vaping nicotine are less than 5% that of smoking.

​

Q34. What are the Cancer risks of vaping?

A34. The Cancer risk of vaping nicotine is less than 0.5% that of smoking. Nicotine does
not cause cancer.

Q35. Was vaping introduced to Australia as a therapeutic product for smoking cessation?

A35. No, vaping was introduced to the world as safer alternative to smoking.

Q36. Why is nicotine in “tobacco, prepared and packed for smoking” exempt from the Poisons Schedule in Australia?

A36. Good question.

Q37. Are nicotine vaping devices “therapeutic” products?

A37. No, nicotine vaping products are a substitute for smoking, a safer alternative to
smoking and are not designed to alleviate any disease.

Q38. What is the difference between disposable nicotine

vapes and refillable tank systems?

A38. Refillable tank systems that Australian ex-smoking adult vapers generally use differ
from disposables in that they are rechargeable, replaceable battery devices that allow
the heating coils to be changed and generally have a variable power system that allows
for a multitude of differing vaping styles depending on the user. They are far more
expensive to buy than disposable vapes which is why almost no youth are vaping them.
Refillable tank systems were sold to adult smokers and vapers by legal, licensed vape
shops unlike the disposables that were sold by black market entities to youth. Ironically, it
is the legal, licensed vape shops that were cruelly shut down by mark Butlers legislation
recently.

Q39. Can vaping relieve or reverse the affects of

Asthma and COPD?

A39. Yes, nicotine vaping can relieve or reverse the symptoms of asthma and COPD.

Q40. What are the health benefits of vaping after quitting smoking?

A40. There are many health benefits of vaping after quitting smoking completely, most
adult ex-smoking vapers report feeling healthier, renewed sense of taste and smell,
better cardiac and lung health, more money in their pocket, and many other benefits
including living longer for their children and families.

Q41. Is nicotine good for Focus, Attention and Memory?

A41. Nicotine has been sjown to improve focus, attention and memory for those that
need it.

Q42. Is Big Tobacco trying to addict a whole new generation of youth to nicotine?

A42. It would certainly help the bottom line of tobacco companies but smoking is
decreasing, particularly in countries like the UK where vaping is embraced and regulated
proportionally. The companies trying to addict youth are illicit black market sellers that
sell disposable vapes to youth.

Q43. Does vaping liquid contain “anti-freeze” and “weed-killer”?

A43. No, vaping liquid does not contain either of these despite misinformed statements
by health authorities and politicians.

​

Q44. How many explosions happen in vaping devices?

A44. Vaping explosions are rare with properly regulated vaping devices. Lithium Ion
battery explosions can occur with some unregulated vaping devices but no more
regularly than other Lithium Ion battery devices like laptops, mobile phones etc.

Q45. What is Tobacco Harm Reduction?

A45. Tobacco Harm Reduction is anything that involves reducing the harm from tobacco smoking. THR is no different from any other harm reduction strategy such as seatbelts,
bicycle helmets, safe injecting rooms, low alcohol beer and condoms. Tobacco Harm
Reduction is the only harm reduction strategy not recognized by the Australian
government and health authorities.

​