The advertising watchdog’s probe into the advertising of e cigarettes has been welcomed by British American Tobacco (BAT), the biggest tobacco company to show a TV ad for e cigarettes in the UK.

The Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) last week kicked off an eight week consultation which will look at introducing new rules to clear up “concern” and “confusion” in this area.

The consultation could lead to new rules protecting under 18s and it follows criticism over an e cigarette ad broadcast during ITV’s I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! which attracted more than 1,100 complaints to the advertising watchdog.

Adverts for e cigarettes are currently subject to the general rules under the advertising code, such as whether they are harmful or offensive, in which case they could be banned.

But the advertising watchdog believes there needs to be specific rules in place in light of public concern over issues such as children taking part in “vaping”, the inhaling of vapour from e cigarettes, along with uncertainty among advertisers about the rules.

The watchdog is also mindful that e cigarettes also carry an obvious association with tobacco advertising, which has been banned on TV since 1965.

Des Naugton, managing director of BAT owned Nicoventures which makes e cigarette brand Vype, said “In the light of the differing rules today, we are supportive of the e cigarette advertising consultation which is being led by the Committees of Advertising practice (CAP and Broadcast Committee of Advertising).

“We hope that it will result in clear and consistent rules for advertising e cigarettes across all media to ensure that they are marketed responsibly, whilst giving appropriate marketing freedoms to allow this important product category to develop further.”

Shahriar Coupal, secretary of CAP which is a sister body to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), said “The market for e cigarettes is fast growing and the existing rules haven’t been able to give advertisers the clarity they need. By proposing new specific rules, we’re providing a clear framework for responsible advertising. Given the potential association with tobacco products and the fact that many e cigarettes contain nicotine, it’s important we put in place strong responsibility rules to make sure that the public and particularly children are protected.”

The ASA recently banned an ad from e cigarette maker VIP, which featured a woman saying “I want you to get it out. I want to see it. Feel it. Hold it. Put it in my mouth.” The ad led to 1,156 complaints.

The introduction of new rules comes as the European Union also considers the future of e cigarette advertising. It has passed rules which mean that EU member states have to decide if e cigarettes are tobacco or medicine products.

According to Mintel, the market in e cigarettes ballooned by 340% to 193m in 2013. Last month, BAT launched a campaign for its Vype electronic cigarettes the first time a big tobacco company has marketed products on TV since cigar ads were banned in 1991.

To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email media or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly “for publication”.

To get the latest media news to your desktop or mobile, follow MediaGuardian on Twitter and Facebook.

East texas woman claims e-cigarettes made her sick – fox5 vegas – kvvu

Fortuna cigarettes online
GLADEWATER, TX (KLTV) One East Texas woman said she became terribly ill the reason? She said it was e cigarettes.

The Gladewater woman is determined to spread the word, claiming that after switching from regular cigarettes to electronic cigarettes, she fell ill. She said that she had hoped the new product would be safer, and ultimately help her quit smoking, but she never expected what happened next.

It was three weeks ago that Debbie Jean Hendrix had an eye opening talk with her husband.

“I told him, I said, ‘I don’t want to live like that,'” Hendrix said. “And he said, ‘Well, you better quit smoking.” Well, that’s when we started the e cigarettes,” she explained.

Debbie said she saw an elderly woman who required an oxygen tank because of smoking. But, just days after switching to e cigarettes, Debbie said she began to wonder about the product’s safety.

“I started feeling really kind of jittery,” Hendrix said. “And once I started feeling real jittery me and my husband went to town to eat and I got so sick I couldn’t keep anything down,” she remembered.

That’s when Debbie said she went to her doctor.

“He thought I was on drugs when I went in there. That’s how bad it was,” she said.

Debbie said she does have pre existing health issues, but she said, her doctor insisted she quit the e cigarettes.

“He would definitely say that the vapor cigarettes needed to go because they had chemical in them and he said it could be the cause from the chemical,” Hendrix said.

“From what I understand, the poisoning could take place through one of three venues,” Dr. Bill Sorensen, a health science expert, explained.

Nicotine poisoning can happen by inhalation, ingestion, or skin absorption.

Debbie did notice when changing the liquid on her electronic cigarette that it often leaked, causing liquid nicotine to spill onto her hands.

“You should be feeling those symptoms within minutes, maybe a few hours after the experience with the e cigarette,” Dr. Sorensen explained.

And that’s exactly what Debbie said happened to her.

“People might be thinking that it’s safer and because it’s safer I m allowed to smoke twice as much,” Dr. Sorensen said.

Though other chemicals may be gone, he said, nicotine is ever present.

It is toxic. It’s addictive. And even if you’re not poisoned by it, or even if you don’t become a little sick, you’re on the road to addiction.”

As for Debbie, she has stopped using e cigarettes.

“I do feel a little better now that I have got off of them and I wouldn’t recommend them to no one,” Debbie said.

She also said she’ll be quitting smoking completely.

The Centers for Disease Control published a report this month stating calls to poison control centers about e cigarettes have shot up from about one per month in September 2010, to approximately 215 per month in February 2014.

Many of those calls involved children, but the CDC did attribute them to e cigarettes related overdoses.

Copyright 2014 KLTV. All rights reserved.

?