As everyone who vapes on a regular basis probably already understands, there is a lot of pressure coming down from both the federal government as well as the states to regulate vaping.  You might have noticed that we put an age verification system on our website voluntarily just because we believe that there should be some common sense regulations with regards to who uses vaping products.  We believe that as a business we have the responsibility to sell our products to adults who can use them responsibly.  With that said, the pressures that are coming down from government agencies are about regulating vaping in the same way that smoking is regulated, and for the same reasons.  The majority of smoking laws are for the benefit of those who do not smoke, and the smoking laws banning the use of cigarettes and tobacco products indoors in many states are specifically to protect people from the dangers of second hand smoke.  We agree that people who do not smoke should not be exposed to the dangerous particulate matter that is generated when a person burns tobacco, and we are not debating if the clean indoor air act should be in place.  We are stating that if regulations on vaping are going to be discussed, they should be discussed from the standpoint of what vaping is, and not making a comparison to smoking just “because it looks like smoke.”

Vaping is a process that vaporizes liquid into vapor which is inhaled into the lungs as a transfer mechanism for nicotine and flavorings.  The liquid that is used in vaping devices is called e-liquid or e-juice and is made of the same essential ingredients as an inhaler which is utilized for asthma sufferers.  The particulate matter that is expelled into the air when a person draws from a vaping device and then breathes out is no more than the level of particulate matter in the air at any point.  This means that a person vaping is not adding dangerous chemicals into the air that are being breathed in by people around them, and even though the vapor cloud “looks like smoke” it is not smoke and cannot be lumped into the same regulations.  It is a completely different substance and if any discussion of regulations are going to happen that make any sense, it should revolve around what is actually making up the cloud, not what it is perceived to be.

With that said, we encourage people who vape to understand that people are not pleased with you vaping around them and their children.  Inside of a vape shop where we are all understanding of the process and vaping ourselves there is no issue, but if you decide to vape inside a K-Mart or a restaurant just to prove the point that it is not regulated like cigarettes, then sooner or later those restrictions are going to come down, effectively eliminating vape shops from the places you can vape because they are indoors.  Please consider your surroundings when you are choosing to vape, and if you feel that you might be annoying someone, just stop and move to somewhere else.