Most would agree electronic cigarettes are safer than regular cigarettes, but is that good enough? More research clearly needs to be done.
(PHYSORG)- Makers of electronic cigarettes are reporting strong growth in sales as anti-tobacco laws force European smokers into the cold streets, but campaigners say the device is undercutting health efforts.
Spain joined Sunday the ranks of countries that have outlawed smoking in enclosed public space after a wave of similar legislation across Europe.
For the makers of electronic cigarettes, which simulate the sensation of a cigarette and can contain nicotine, the traditionally heavy smoking nation marks a potentially lucrative market for their much-criticised product.
"We have seen sales grow by 30 percent each year since 2007 when we launched our product," said a spokesman for EdSylver, one of the leading manufacturers of the product invented in China in 2004.
Manufacturers such as EdSylver say the plastic cigarette is not harmful for the smoker or people around them, but this claim is rejected by health experts.
Read more here.