Sales of electronic cigarettes rise, and so does criticism

This e-cigarette comprises a cartridge of liquid nicotine inserted into a battery-operated steel tube. Makers of electronic cigarettes are reporting strong growth in sales. -- ST PHOTO: CAROLINE CHIA

PARIS - 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 on 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 per cent 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.

At a World Health Organisation conference in Uruguay in November, one of its leading anti-tobacco experts Eduardo Bianco said electronic cigarettes 'sabotaged smoking prevention efforts", which were designed to encourage people to quit.

The plastic cigarettes function as mini aerosols, releasing artificial smoke with or without nicotine. 'I am very happy with it, I want to repeat the feeling of smoking, without the harm of nicotine,' said one Parisian user. -- AFP