TVECA’S RESPONSE TO DR. OZ’S IRRESPONSIBLE CLAIMS AGAINST THE E-VAPOR INDUSTRY
Atlanta-On Friday December 5th Dr. Mehmet Oz on his “The Dr. Oz Show” and his guests made false and very damaging claims about the e-Vapor industry that is now in its eighth year serving the U.S. market. The Tobacco Vapor Electronic Cigarette Association (tveca.com) would like to address a few of the most serious claims made by Dr. Oz and his “experts” on the show that was shockingly absent of any representative and/or expert from the e-Vapor industry, of which there are many, or brought forth a single American harmed by an e-Vapor product after 7+ years on the market with billions and billions of uses annually:
CONCERNS ABOUT PPG-Propylene glycol (PPG), is a simple organic compound and the most common constituent of e-Vapor products is used in many FDA approved products such as nasal inhalers. PPG generates its non-smoke water vapor, has been in the U.S. food supply for generations and approved by the EPA for human inhalation use: "Upon reviewing the available toxicity information, the Agency (the EPA) has concluded that there are no endpoints of concern of oral, dermal, or inhalation exposure to propylene glycol and dipropylene glycol.” (http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/propylene_glycol_red.pdf) . In fact all constituents used in e-Vapor products have been approved by the EPA/FDA (though e-Vapor products are not approved by the FDA) for human consumption and have been in the U.S. food supply for generations.
CLAIMS OF ADDITIONAL STUDY NEEDED-There have now been over 45+ studies completed on e-Vapor products and in not one study has there ever been found any constituent at any level harmful to humans. The show cited that formaldehyde had been purportedly discovered from a sample in a Japanese study. As with all science it is not the mere finding of any particular constituent that is newsworthy and/or concerning but at what level that constituent is found as it is the dosage of a constituent found that makes the poison-not its mere detection.
In making the statement that additional study is needed as “we do not know the long term effects of e-Vapor products” is in itself self-serving for a show that seems to have a predetermined conclusion that e-Vapor products are of no societal value and searched for “experts” friendly to this assumption and leaped to non-scientific conclusions. e-Vapor products have been on the domestic market since early 2007 with millions of daily users. Dr. Oz is and was free to ask any e-Vapor user to study that vapers physiology after years of their e-Vapor use in order determine if they are better off using e-Vapor products or return to smoking tobacco cigarettes. Many doctors would and do support their clients continued use of e-Vapor and the TVECA and industry will gladly provide vapers for immediate study-but we assume Dr. Oz and staff know the study’s conclusion.
There are millions and millions of Americans using e-Vapor products daily with billions and billions of uses without a single incident of harm. In fact in a landmark court case brought by the industry in 2009 and lost by the FDA the court stated “Regarding harm to third parties and to the public interest, the district court observed the FDA had cited no evidence to show that electronic cigarettes harmed anyone”. That was on December 10, 2010 and to date NO ONE has put forth A SINGLE consumer harmed by the use of e-Vapor products yet we know of 460,000 Americans who die annually from smoking tobacco cigarettes. For a show such as Dr. Oz’ to make the claim that e-Vapor products are not safe and should not be used after seven plus years of their use and not put forth on the show a single person harmed by an e-Vapor products use is shockingly irresponsible.
PACKAGING ISSUES AND SALES TO MINORS- Claims were made that insinuated the e-Vapor industry was irresponsible in not labeling and/or disclosing product ingredients, not providing child-proof packaging/marketing guidelines, product nicotine levels and of marketing our products to minors. The TVECA, which was founded in 2008, has since its inception set standards for our members and the industry in regard to labeling, marketing and packaging all of which can be seen here: http://tveca.com/electronic-cigarette-compliance.
As e-Vapor products are regulated as tobacco products their sales and marketing to minors is prohibited.
NO SMOKER HAS QUIT SMOKING USING E-VAPOR PRODUCTS-The statement made by show guest Dr. Andrea King that no smoker has quit using e-Vapor products is vastly troubling and shows an embarrassing purposeful lack of due-diligence by Dr. Oz, his staff and guests. The industry first does not make any claims that we are a stop-smoking or cessation product. Secondly millions of Americans have transitioned away from tobacco cigarettes and to e-Vapor products. The Dr. Oz Show and his guests couldn’t find a single person who transitioned away from tobacco cigarettes to e-Vapor products? Again, the Dr. Oz Show had a predetermined conclusion and sought out guests and facts to buttress their very unscientific and self-serving position.
Dr. Oz and his staff should be ashamed of how they have castigated and demonized the one product smokers have embraced as a vastly less harmful option to the smoking of tobacco cigarettes-the one product we know kills over 460,000 Americans annually. Let’s see if The Dr. Oz Show now has the courage to address the false and unscientific claims the show has made and undo the unjust harm and fear it placed into the millions Americans now enjoying e-Vapor products daily.
About the TVECA-The TVECA is a non-profit e-Vapor advocacy group founded in 2008 to support the efforts of domestic and now international firms involved in e-Vapor commerce. For more information, please contact Thomas Kiklas at 949-648-2525 or email at tom@tveca.com.
