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E-Cigarettes Yet to Gain FDA Approval


If you believed the manufacturers of e-cigarettes, you would think they were God's gift to the nicotine-addicted. They are marketed as safe nicotine delivery systems, complete with the look and feel of real cigarettes. According to a recent story in CNN, the FDA isn't sold on these magic sticks just yet -- is it really any surprise?

E-cigarettes are plastic cigarette-like contraptions that deliver pure nicotine to the user when sucked upon. The process is fueled by a small internal battery that heats a small store of liquid nicotine housed within the filter. When a person sucks in as they would with a traditional cigarette, the heat and liquid combine to vaporize the nicotine, which produces a small puff of "smoke" from the tip (which lights up for good measure). Manufacturers compare the nicotine in their product to that in patches and gum used to curb addiction, but the FDA considers e-cigs an unapproved new drug, citing a lack of scientific proof of their safety and/or effectiveness and is currently attempting to block their importation.

There is no doubt that these devices are safer than real cigarettes, but we believe the Elicko Taieb, CEO of e-cig manufacturer Smoking Everywhere, didn't help his case when he admitted, in a statement to CNN, that "it is a pretty new product, so we are not 100 percent sure of the side effects at this point, " He went on to say " we haven't heard of any negative side effects yet, but we are pretty sure they are safe." Whew, well that's a load off.

We know from experience that "pretty sure" isn't sure at all, so for now we will just chew some gum. [From: CNN]

Computers

Can Gadgets and Tech Help You Quit Smoking?

We'll know the answer soon enough, as Wired.com writer and cigarette addict, Charlie Sorrel, will attempt to quit smoking with the help of four different stop-smoking aids: a fake cigarette that vaporizes nicotine, various iPhone applications (iTunes link), nicotine patches, and a box that doles out smokes at a given time interval. Sorrel doesn't mention a time line or procedure, but we're anxious to see the results anyways when they're posted. As for our recommendation, we're really into My Stop Smoking Coach with Allen Carr. Or not. [From: Wired]

World Health Organization Bans E-Cigarettes


As it turns out, the World Health Organization (WHO) isn't condoning e-cigarette products -- shockingly -- as some manufacturers might like you to believe. In fact, the lawsuit flag is being waved at a few companies who brazenly plastered the organization's name and logo across promotional material, suggesting an endorsement of the product.

The WHO's Douglas Bettcher asserts that the product is untested as a nicotine replacement therapy, stating, "If the marketers of the electronic cigarette want to help smokers quit, then they need to conduct clinical studies and toxicity analyses."

So while e-cigs might not carry the same carcinogenic risks as traditional smoking, there are still plenty of health issues surrounding liquid nicotine and all the nasty additives it's served in... and the WHO isn't about to let you forget it. [From: WHO via PhysOrg]

Cell Phones

Cigarette Pack Hands-Free Headset Is Remarkably Addictive


Maybe it's just because we had a rough weekend, but we've yet to piece together what the purpose of this device is. Officially, it's a novelty cigarette pack-shaped earphone headset for Nokia / Samsung / Sony Ericsson mobiles. That's to say it enables you to just talk into the pack rather than into your phone. At just $6.79, we'd love to say this would at least make a good gag gift, but honestly, we can't figure out what's to "get." Hmmph. [From: DealExtreme via Gearfuse]

Computers, iPod

Apple Admits to iPod Nano Problems, Will Replace Faulty Devices


It's only taken a number of years and some seriously ruined pants -- but Apple has finally come clean on the flammable nature of the first-generation iPod nano, and is now offering to replace the faulty devices. After reports today that two more of the media players had lit up without warning in Japan, the company issued a statement admitting that the nanos do -- in fact -- have battery problems which cause them to smoke or spark and generally burn the hell out of things. In the company's words:

"Apple has determined that in very rare cases batteries in first generation iPod nanos sold between September 2005 and December 2006 can overheat causing failure and deformation of the iPod nano. Apple has received very few reports of such incidents (less than 0.001 percent of first generation iPod nano units), which have been traced back to a single battery supplier. There have been no reports of serious injuries or property damage, and no reports of incidents for any other iPod nano model.

Any first generation iPod nano customers who have experienced their battery overheating should contact AppleCare for a replacement. Any other customers who have concerns about their first generation iPod nano battery should also contact AppleCare."

Well, thanks guys... at least we didn't die. [From: CNET]

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Cell Phones

Cell Phones a Greater Threat Than Smoking, Asbestos?

Cell Phones a Greater Threat than Smoking, Asbestos?

There are plenty of people out there who believe that talking on a cell phone is just as unhealthy as sticking your head in front of an active X-Ray machine and holding it there while you engage in idle conversation with a friend. Others, though, think the first group are being overly paranoid and probably are the sort who won't use a public restroom under any circumstances for fear of picking up a flesh-eating virus. Scientific findings are still rather divided on this one, with most indicating that mobiles are perfectly safe, but an Australian researcher is bucking the trend, saying that cell phone use is a greater global threat than cigarette smoking or breathing asbestos.

Dr. Vini Khurana of Canberra Hospital doesn't actually believe that, on an individual basis, cell phones are more dangerous than those things that have been conclusively shown to be deadly in the right concentrations. However, due to the global spread of mobile phones, he believes they provide a much greater overall threat to people worldwide than either of the other two. He cites eight worldwide studies indicating a link between cell phone use and brain tumors, "a life-ending diagnosis in the vast majority of those diagnosed," and believes that in the next four years more studies will prove the link.

In the mean time we'll keep holding on to the 2005 study from the European Institute of Cancer Research that showed no cancer link among the 4,000 people who participated, and maybe try to keep our calls to a minimum.

From NEWS.com.au

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Cell Phones, Green Tech

The Electric, Smokeless Cigarette

Crown 7 Offeres Electric Smokeless Cigarette
For those of us who have yet to kick our nicotine habits, fulfilling our smoky urges is progressively more difficult as we're banned from lighting up virtually everywhere outside of our bedrooms. There are a few ways to get your nicotine fix sans smoke, but most of us just don't get the same satisfaction from terrible tasting chewing gum at $70 a pop.

Crown 7, in an effort to cash in on us overtaxed cancer-stick wielding suckers, is offering electric cigars, cigarettes, and pipes that the company claims will allow you to smoke in normally smoke-free areas. A filter cartridge is inserted in the device and a rechargeable lithium-ion battery (just like in your cell phone or laptop) activates a smoke-like water vapor that fills your lungs with nicotine and an earthy (read: tastes vaguely like dirt) tobacco flavor.

While the idea sounds pretty good on paper, in practice the whole thing sort of falls apart. First, we doubt you'll actually get away with smoking this thing in restaurants, on trains, or any other place where smoking is banned. Second, the price is astronomical, even for us smokers who are pretty used to being taken advantage of. The cigar unit runs $65, the cigarette $100, and the pipe $150. Cartridges run $10 for a pack of five. Third, we're not sure how comfortable we are sucking on anything that needs to be charged like a cell phone.

From Sci Fi Tech

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