TVECA response to the PSU E-Cigarette claims

The Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association (TVECA) would like to address the sensationalistic disinformation presented by a Portland State University study of e-Vapor products and published by the New England Journal of Medicine. The study made conclusions about levels of found formaldehyde that were produced when using “a high-voltage tank system”. When reviewed, the tests to produce the levels of formaldehyde reported were produced outside of the normal operating envelope in these high voltage systems. The measured levels of formaldehyde found, only took place when the tested units were brought, by their own admission, to very high and anomalous temperatures of 650 to 700 degree Celsius and in the presence of a catalyst (metal based) whereas e-Vapors Propylene Glycol and Glycerol and other flavors in e-vapor products normally vaporize at between 200 to 300 degrees Celsius, so the generation of formaldehyde when a unit is used properly is not possible-and supported as such by this study.

If an e-Vapor user were to have their high voltage unit generate this anomalous e-Vapor puff above its normal operating range of 200 to 300 degrees Celsius, the user would notice a foul burnt taste and cease its use immediately thusly not ingesting any e-Vapor further. Also reported in the study was that formaldehyde was “NOT DETECTED” in low voltage systems at all (see attachment 1) and stated “at low voltage (3.3 V), we did not detect the formation of any formaldehyde-releasing agents” These low voltage systems make up the vast majority of consumers using e-Vapor products.

What is most distressing to us and the e-Vapor industry is the conclusion by lead professor Peyton (who was compensated to perform the study) that “It could take years to know what health risks people face vaping high-voltage e-cigarettes. We're playing catch up. The horse is out of the barn.” This very self-serving statement about “the need for more research” is constantly made by researchers who are compensated by doing on-going research. If Professor Peyton sincerely desires to research those using e-Vapor products that are now in their eighth year on the domestic market to determine if there are any detrimental human physiological effects, there are millions and millions of Americans that have used and are using e-Vapor products daily for years who would be more than willing to be studied.




The TVECA and our member firms are very proud of our history in providing to smokers a vastly less harmful and more logical option to the smoking of tobacco cigarettes-the one product we know kills over 450,000 Americans annually. If Portland State University sincerely desires to study this “out of the barn horse”, the TVECA and its member firms will gladly provide the names of tens of thousands of e-Vapor clients who have used our products since the markets inception in 2007-we just won’t provide them compensation.

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