Compared to smoking, vaping has something of a bad reputation. We look at why vaping has such a bad rep, what harm this does and what we can do change it to a positive vaping reputation?

A Culture of Smoking

Smoking has been a thing for much longer than commercial cigarettes have been around. There have been pipes and various other smoking-related methods used all over the world for hundreds of years. Modern day smoking is smoking else though. Tobacco cigarette smoking was very commonly seen back in the day and way back when, if you worked in a cigarette factory part of your wages were given in cigarettes. This wasn’t optional, it was just the way you were paid, so why not smoke them? The problem back then was people really didn’t know what damage cigarette smoke could cause. It was just something that everyone did. It would be naive to assume the same thinking wasn’t still ingrained in some of us.

Modern Day Tobacco Cigarettes

Fast forward to modern day and science has caught up with the world. It has been proven beyond any doubt that smoking is incredibly dangerous and as such may cause life-altering illnesses as well as premature death. Now that we have recognised this truth, it stands to reason that people wouldn’t want to quit, and some have. Many have. Many, however, continued then and a generation or two later, continue to smoke now. Why?

Giving up smoking is incredibly hard. You have to fight the physical habits associated with smoking (such as the hand to mouth action) as well as your body being used to nicotine and the combination of chemicals found in tobacco cigarettes. Ditching tobacco is hard, however vaping makes it much easier. Why is it then that so many people still continue to smoke, despite knowing that vaping is a valid and healthier alternative?

A Mixture of Fear and Ignorance

Did you know that if you carrying an e cigarette that there is a very good chance that you will spontaneously combust? Are you aware that e liquids are full of toxic chemicals which will burn your lungs? Honestly, while these statements might seem ridiculous to many of you, there are some who believe the propaganda that the media have spread via numerous outlets. Why does vaping have a bad reputation among some demographics? Mainly because they believe whatever the “news” can say, assuming that whatever they read online or in print will be factually true. It often isn’t.

While we hate to back Trump up on anything, "Fake News" is a thing when it comes to vaping reporting. Likewise, the verbal and online sharing of misinformation does nothing to correct the vaping reputation.

A general lack of understanding, made worse by the amount of false information out there is holding people back from choosing to switch from smoking to vaping.

What Can We Do About Boosting Positive Vaping Reputation

The best thing that can be done in order to avoid or reverse a bad vaping reputation is to forge ahead with sharing facts about vaping. Tell people about how Public Health England have found vaping to be at least 95% less harmful than smoking. Share information on how an e cigarette works, about what is actually inside an e liquid and more. Don't be pushy though, nothing will make people stay loyal to their smoking habit quicker than a vaping fan telling them that they are wrong over and over again.

The more accurate information is out there the more likely someone is to want to give it a go in order to quit smoking (vaping has been proven to be a useful, successful cessation aid for many people who have struggled to give up smoking using traditional quitting methods such as group support and NRT).  Indeed, Public Health England, supported by many others, are determined to convince the UK government to adopt e cigarettes as official cessation devices so that they may be given out on prescription to those seriously wanting to quit smoking.

There are many blog posts and articles supporting a positive vaping reputation and as more and more official sources, such as Public Health England, NHS officials and others continue to consistently report positive findings we hope that those who strive to thwart a positive vaping reputation in favour of offering sensational headlines will find their anti-vaping propaganda significantly less effective.

At the end of the day the only thing that matters is the health and the wellbeing of the world’s individuals, and if that means more vaping in order to achieve less smoking, we’re all for it. If you want to change the vaping reputation, be considerate, following vaping rules and lead by example.

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