Who are you, WHO WHO

Mirror-posted from my forum, Vaporist, and my blog, Synaptic Circus
[new comments in red]

Submitted to World Health Organization

I must protest about the comments made by Douglas Bettcher in an article here:

In it, Bettcher is attributed to the statement that, "The World Health Organization says there is absolutely no scientific evidence that the electronic cigarette is a legitimate nicotine replacement therapy that can help people quit smoking real cigarettes." I know of at least ONE study.

My response would be STUDY ME. This is what I KNOW: I was a tobacco cigarette smoker for 25 years and I tried every other way available to quit, and was unsuccessful. I started using an eCig, and immediately stopped smoking, with NO DISCOMFORT, no JITTERS, no need or desire to buy another cigarette. IT WAS THE EASIEST HEALTH TRANSITION I'VE EVER MADE, AND MOST ASSUREDLY A RESOUNDING SUCCESS. The same is true for my best friend, and many others I know of through eCig forums online (to include a new one, I started myself to help spread the word).

According to this, your statements as an organization, and Bettcher's statements as your representative are erroneous.

The article also states that "also in certain jurisdictions where it is being used as well, it seems to be used to evade the smoking bans in public places and work places." Where are you getting this stance? Is it from WHO??? What's wrong with evading smoking bans by doing something that IS NOT HARMFUL TO ANYONE? isn't that the point?

Also in the article: "The electronic cigarette is not cheap. Bettcher says the whole apparatus in Bulgaria1 costs $100 and the rechargeable nicotine pack costs about $14. He says the product is sold around the world mainly through the Internet. This way he says, manufacturers can evade country regulations and taxes." Bettcher and WHO need to get with the program. Cheap is relative and subjective in this case. I spent $125 per month on cigarettes. I bought my first starter kit for around $107, and after that, it costs me around $40 a month to maintain.2 You can buy pre-prepared juice for around $8, which will last about a month; or you can buy 5 cartridges for around $5, or you can buy blank cartridges and fill them with smoke juice. That's CHEAPER than cigarettes, and it eliminated the 300-500 toxins found in tar....3
Also, Americans get eCigs from other countries because America has not yet realized the overwhelming potential electronic cigarettes not only as an economic boon, but as a way to eliminate one of our most pervasive and damaging health issues. I would think that WHO would be more excited about that, than degrading the technology of electronic cigarettes. Do you have some sort of investment in tobacco companies or stock in cessation-products? I can think of no other reason why you would be spreading such misinformation.

I implore you to please get the facts before you start discouraging new technologies that might help save the lives of millions.

Kelli Jae Baeli
Author, Webmaster, eCig Enthusiast

[ADDENDUM:
1. Bulgaria? Most I know, including me get them from manufacturers in CHINA--the patent is held by a Chinese citizen.
2. now, i mostly use a mini-ecig, which you can buy a kit for at around $40 to $80, and I use ejuice for refills, so now, my costs are even less than when i first wrote this.
3....and furthermore, it's not so much that they are evading paying any taxes or adhering to regulations, it's that the US is LATENT in the embracing this technology, and the socio-political machine, to include the FDA and the FTC, is once again standing in the way of things that would help Americans be healthier. So if these companies have to skirt things in some way, I say LET THEM SKIRT. The result is in saving lives and lowering the cost of health care]


Also note, that the WHO has stated in their report,

Quote:

"Cigarettes kill half of all lifetime users. Half die in middle age – between 35 and 69 years old. No other consumer product is as dangerous, or kills as many people. Tobacco kills more than AIDS, legal drugs, illegal drugs, road accidents, murder, and suicide combined. Tobacco already kills more men in developing countries than in industrialised countries, and it is likely that deaths among women will soon be the same. While 0.1 billion people died from tobacco use in the 20th century, ten times as many will die in the 21st century. Maternal smoking during pregnancy is responsible for many foetal deaths and is also a major cause of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Passive smoking in the home, workplace, or in public places also kills, although in lower numbers. However, those killed do not die from their own habit, but from someone else’s. Children are at particular risk from adults smoking, and even smoking by other adults around a pregnant woman has a harmful effect on a foetus."

And so I wonder why they seem to be so against electronic cigarettes, which eliminate all these issues? Does this make sense to anyone besides the World Health Organization?


Here we go again. Another site quotes comments by the World Health Organizations, and I, once again, posted a comment about it. Here's my comment:

Jae Baeli
posted 2/25/09 @ 3:52 AM EST*

It comes as no surprise to me that there are naysayers out there--what is surprising is that an organization like WHO, with the term "HEALTH" in their name, would seem so determined to spread misinformation about a product that could save the lives of thousands, maybe millions of smokers in this country. I tried to quit for 25 years, and was never successful until I began to use the electronic cigarette. The same is true for my best friend and every other eCig user I have talked to, seen posts on forums from, or heard about elsewhere. It's time the Powers That Be got with the program and started moving us into the modern era--an era free of tobacco products that kill millions. To be anything less than supportive of this new technology is to be an accessory to murder.

Jae Baeli
Former tobacco smoker and now eCig Enthusiast.
http://vaporist.forumotion.net/

ADDENDUM: I am trying to find a source/manufacturer that I can afford to buy from, so that I can sell eCig kits locally. As soon as I do, I'm all over it. I could have already sold about 40 of them here.

Hemp: N.B.'s crop of the 21st century

Published Friday August 8th, 2008

New Brunswick can become a model for the 21st century, create a vast array of jobs in many sectors, and retain westward fleeing job-seekers by fully embracing hemp farming. Not only could hemp production keep workers in the province, it could also attract new industry and immigrants into the province.

Hemp is truly one of nature's gifts to mankind, but no member of the plant kingdom has ever been so willfully and stubbornly misunderstood. It is generally assumed that hemp became collateral damage in the United States' so-called "war on drugs."

There is compelling evidence, however, that hemp was actually the primary target of the whole "Reefer Madness" hysteria. A number of major U.S. corporations, lumber and pulp barons, and chemical companies stood to lose lucrative market shares because the hemp plant is so useful and versatile. Hemp provides the raw material for bio-fuel, paper, and plastic alternatives, among its many uses. It is time to understand what we have lost, and will continue to lose, if we don't realize the infinite benefits of hemp production.

Since the mid-1930s, about half the world's forests have been cut to make paper. If hemp had not been outlawed, most forests would likely still be standing, providing oxygen for the planet.

Hemp plants provide four times the paper fibre per acre per year than trees do, and can be re-planted yearly. Hemp is naturally resistant to insects and weeds and thrives in New Brunswick. Nearly half of the agricultural chemicals used by the U.S. are applied to cotton crops.

As people continue to become more ecologically aware and responsible, the demand for all types of organic products will increase. Hemp fibre is a naturally organic alternative to cotton. It is much more durable, wears longer, and is resistant to salt - which is why it has been traditionally used to make ropes and sails for ships for thousands of years. In fact, the word "canvas" comes from an Arabic word for hemp.

Henry Ford experimented with utilizing hemp as a bio-fuel source and as an ingredient in a composite material for automobile bodies. In 1941, the Ford Motor Company rolled out an experimental car that was made from hemp. Ford demonstrated this vehicle's durability by beating on the fender with an axe. It bounced off and did not leave even a scratch. Imagine the benefits of a rust-proof, bio-degradable car that runs on hemp bio-fuel.... and where the planet would be today if this had become a reality 70 years ago! Also imagine that petro-chemical companies and many other major U.S. corporations still have a stake in preserving the status quo while they fill their coffers with money spent on over-priced gas, oil, chemicals, fertilizer and consumer goods that are petroleum based. The United States is the only industrialized nation that prohibits the growing of hemp.

In 1937, Popular Science magazine listed more than 25,000 potential uses for the hemp plant, and modern technology has increased this number. The market for organic food and personal care products has exploded. In addition to its many industrial uses, hemp also provides one of nature's most perfect foods in its seed. It contains the essential fatty acids omega 3 and 6 in the proper 3:1 ratio for human health, and provides superior anti-oxidant qualities. Hemp nuts are also one of the world's richest sources of protein, second only to the soybean, and they taste great. Chefs all over the world are using hemp butter, nuts and oil in their kitchens.

Right now, in many N.B. stores, you can buy hemp foods and goods that were produced in other Canadian provinces. The Manitoba Harvest Company is a co-operative that is co-owned by more than 20 farming families. In Ontario, the Cool Hemp Company is producing ice cream and cookies made from hemp seed - desserts that are both good and good for you!

When you add up all of the environmental benefits, jobs, products and industry that would be created by hemp production, you have only a win/win situation for the province of New Brunswick.

There is a lingering reluctance to embrace hemp farming because of the current U.S. laws and attitude. But people should control their institutions rather than continue to be dominated by these human creations. At the Kyoto Summit, Al Gore used an apt hockey analogy when he appealed to Canada for environmental support. He suggested that we not look to where the United States has the puck now - but where the puck will ultimately be in the future.

Stephanie Kelley is a resident of Perth-Andover.
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http://telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com/article/378219

Mercola on Cola

From mercola.com

"Let's get one thing PERFECTLY clear. I am no fan of ANY artificial sweetener. I wrote an entire book about them called Sweet Deception. Unfortunately that book is currently out of print. I am getting the copyright back and will be reprinting it soon as it is the best book I have ever written and clearly documents the challenges with ALL artificial sweeteners, especially Splenda.

I am absolutely convinced that if you HAVE to drink soda, soda with sugar, even high fructose corn syrup, is safer for you than diet soda, but if you have been reading this newsletter for awhile you know that I don't believe anyone should be drinking soda. There is simply no excuse, none at all. It is one of the easiest and most important diet changes anyone can make.

However, soda provides some benefits. In fact, they have dozens of useful purposes, such as:

• Cleaning your dirty toilet bowl
• Removing rust spots from chrome
• Getting gum out of your hair
• Getting rid of skunk odor
• Cleaning grout

According to some, you can even use it to shell hard-boiled eggs; if you soak hard boiled eggs in Coke, the shells will supposedly dissolve, eliminating the need to actually have to peel them.

If you are actually drinking soda as a beverage, you are putting your health at risk every time you do so. Drinking just one soda a day can increase your risk of being obese by an amazing 60 percent. And it will increase your risk of diabetes by 85 percent! Soda drinkers even have a higher throat cancer risk.

From a nutritional standpoint, soda has pretty much nothing to offer except bad news -- including the ridiculous new “healthy” sodas that have hit the stores recently. Some of the major components of a can of soda include:

Phosphoric Acid: This can interfere with your body's ability to use calcium, which can lead to osteoporosis or softening of your teeth and bones.

Sugar: It is a proven fact that sugar increases insulin levels, which can lead to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, weight gain, premature aging and many more negative side effects. Most sodas include over 100 percent of the RDA of sugar, usually in the form of high fructose corn syrup, the number one source of calories in the U.S.

Caffeine: Caffeinated drinks cause jitters, insomnia, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, elevated blood cholesterol levels, vitamin and mineral depletion, breast lumps, birth defects, and possibly some forms of cancer.

If you thought diet sodas might be a better option, think again. They are filled with unnatural, artificial chemicals, and are actually even worse the regular soda. There are over 92 different health side effects associated with aspartame (Equal) alone, including brain tumors, birth defects, diabetes, emotional disorders and epilepsy/seizures. On top of all that, they won’t even help you lose weight; in fact, they will double your risk of obesity by stimulating your appetite, increasing your carbohydrate cravings, and activating your body’s fat storage mechanisms.

Nutritionally speaking, soda is one of the main reasons why many people suffer health problems. Aside from the negative effects of the soda itself, drinking a lot of soda is likely to leave you with little appetite for vegetables, protein and other food that your body needs.

If you struggle with an addiction to soda (sugar is actually more addictive than cocaine), I strongly recommend you consider Turbo Tapping, a simple yet highly effective tool that will help you stop this health-harming habit.

And remember that a glass of fresh clean water with a squeeze of lemon or lime makes a great soda alternative any day. It won’t, however, kill the rats in your kitchen. Soda is much better suited for that particular purpose."