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Pattern of use, acceptability and risk perception of electronic cigarettes: prospective study of cohorts with biomarkers

Currently, interest in electronic cigarettes has increased on the part of the smoking population and some researchers. The electronic cigarette is an electronic device shaped like a cigarette (there are also devices shaped like a cigar or a pipe) that vaporizes a mixture of nicotine, propylene glycol and other chemical compounds. Its use simulates the use of conventional cigarettes, by inhaling the vapor produced. The device consists of a rechargeable battery, an atomizer and a tank or cartridge that contains the liquid to be vaporized. During the first years, electronic cigarettes and their related products could only be purchased via the Internet; however, as has happened in other countries, the specialized stores where e-cigarettes can be purchased proliferated in Spanish cities during 2013, although it seems that their number has decreased during the last year.
Since the irruption of the electronic cigarette in the market, a polarization has been created, both among researchers and in the population, about its risks and benefits. Some researchers and citizens, groups of users and activists, defend electronic cigarettes as a useful tool to stop smoking or reduce tobacco consumption; they are even suggested as a harm reduction tool for smokers. However, health authorities, other researchers and tobacco control activists consider the electronic cigarette as a way to normalize tobacco consumption in workplaces and public places, in addition to creating new nicotine addicts, especially among the younger population, and promoting dual use with other tobacco products.

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