Imagine this alternative could help millions of people quit smoking and came with only

想象一下，這種選擇可以幫助數百萬人 的人戒了煙，只帶著

a fraction of the harmful chemicals that cigarettes do.

香菸中的有害化學物質的一小部分。 做。

Well, you don’t have to imagine it.

好吧，你不需要想象它。

It exists.

它的存在。

E-cigarettes are the most innovative and promising smoking-cessation product yet invented.

電子煙是最具創新和前景的產品 戒菸產品尚未發明。

So, public health officials and anti-tobacco activists are all in favor of this

所以，公共衛生官員和反煙草的 活動家們都支持這個

life-saving innovation, right?

拯救生命的創新，對吧？

Actually, they’re almost all totally against it.

其實，他們幾乎都是完全反對 它。

Why?

為什麼？

Because, incredibly, they make no substantial distinction between e-cigarettes and real

因為，令人難以置信的是，他們沒有做出實質性的 電子煙和真煙的區別。

cigarettes -- even though they are completely different products.

香菸 -- 儘管它們完全 不同的產品。

To begin with, e-cigarettes aren’t cigarettes.

首先，電子煙不是香菸。

They contain no tobacco.

它們不含菸草。

Instead, a liquid containing nicotine derived from tobacco leaves is vaporized,

相反，含有尼古丁的液體衍生 從菸葉中蒸發出來的。

and users of e-cigarettes inhale that vapor.

和電子煙的使用者吸入該蒸汽。

Vapor, mind-you – not smoke.

汽，心你--不是煙。

This is significant because the real harm from tobacco comes from the combustion process,

這一點很重要，因為真正的危害是 菸草中的菸葉來自於燃燒過程。

which releases hundreds of toxic compounds known as tar.

它釋放出數百種有毒化合物 稱為焦油。

Since e-cigarettes have no tobacco and no combustion, they release no tar.

由於電子煙沒有菸草，沒有 燃燒，它們不會釋放焦油。

This makes them, according to Britain’s Department of Health, at least 95% less harmful

這使得他們，根據英國的 衛生部，至少減少95%的危害

than tobacco cigarettes.

比菸草香菸。

E-cigarettes do contain nicotine, an addictive drug.

電子煙確實含有尼古丁，這是一種讓人上癮的物質。 藥物。

However, there is little evidence that nicotine alone is bad for you, making it similar to, say,

然而，幾乎沒有證據表明，尼古丁 單獨對你不利，使其類似於，說。

caffeine -- a drug used every day by millions of people.

咖啡因--一種數百萬人每天都在使用的藥物。 的人。

Brad Rodu, an oral cancer specialist at the University of Louisville, put it this way:

口腔癌專家布拉德-羅杜，他在 路易斯維爾大學，這樣說吧。

“I love coffee, and I’m sure I could get caffeine if I smoked my coffee beans…

"我喜歡咖啡，我相信我可以得到 咖啡因，如果我薰我的咖啡豆... ...

but I would be paying a much different price in overall health [if I did].”

但我要付出的代價就大不一樣了。 整體健康[如果我這樣做]"。

In other words, when it comes to addictive substances like caffeine or nicotine,

換句話說，當談到令人上癮的... 咖啡因或尼古丁等物質。

it isn’t the addictive substance that’s harmful; it’s how it’s delivered.

這不是成癮物質的危害。 而是它的傳遞方式

As South African psychiatrist Mike Russell said about cigarettes: “[People] smoke for

正如南非精神病學家Mike Russell所言 談到香菸時說。"[人們]吸菸是為了

[the] nicotine, but they die from the tar.”

尼古丁，但他們死於焦油。"

And again, there’s no tar in e-cigarettes.

再說，電子煙中沒有焦油。

Does this all mean e-cigarettes are completely safe?

這一切是否意味著電子煙完全是 安全嗎？

Of course not. Nothing is completely safe.

當然不是。沒有什麼是完全安全的。

E-cigarettes are a relatively new innovation so more research is needed,

電子煙是一個比較新的創新產品 所以還需要更多的研究。

especially on long-term effects.

特別是在長期影響方面。

There’s also a place for sensible regulation to ensure consumer safety.

合理的監管也是有的放矢的 以確保消費者安全。

But unlike normal everyday products, any potential risk posed by e-cigarettes is far outweighed

但與普通日用品不同，任何潛在的 電子煙所帶來的風險遠遠超過了

by a real – not potential – good: saving lives by providing the nicotine that smokers

真正的----而不是潛在的----善：拯救 通過提供吸菸者所需的尼古丁，讓他們的生活變得更美好。

enjoy without delivering the deadly toxins that can kill them.

無毒不歡 可以殺死他們。

Many former smokers have successfully used e-cigarettes to help them

許多曾經的吸菸者已經成功地使用了 電子煙，以幫助他們

kick their nicotine addiction altogether.

徹底戒掉他們的尼古丁癮。

A recent study in an Oxford Journal peer-reviewed publication, Nicotine and Tobacco Research,

最近在牛津雜誌同行評議中的一項研究。 出版品《尼古丁和菸草研究》。

said that e-cigarettes could reduce smoking-related deaths by 21 percent.

說，電子煙可以減少與吸菸有關的。 死亡人數減少21%。

That’s thousands of lives every year.

每年都有成千上萬的生命。

John Britton, an epidemiologist and director of the University of Nottingham’s Center

約翰-布里頓，流行病學家和主任； 諾丁漢大學研究中心的工作人員

for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies, is even more optimistic:

菸草和酒精研究中心，甚至是 樂觀的。

“[E-cigarettes are] the first genuinely new way of helping people stop smoking that

"[電子煙是]第一種真正的電子煙。 幫助人們戒菸的新方法

has come along in decades…[They] have the potential to help half or more of all smokers

幾十年來一直在前進......[他們]有了。 有可能幫助一半或更多的吸菸者。

get off cigarettes.”

脫離香菸。"

So, again, you’d think public health officials and anti-tobacco groups would be doing everything

所以，同樣，你會認為公共衛生官員。 和反煙組織將盡一切努力。

they could to encourage smokers to switch to e-cigarettes.

儘可能地鼓勵吸菸者改行。 到電子煙。

Instead, they push for laws and rules that equate the two products: cigarettes are bad,

相反，他們推行的法律和規則 把這兩種產品等同起來：香菸是壞的。

so e-cigarettes must also be bad.

所以電子煙也一定是壞的。

As of August 2016, the US Food and Drug Administration has ruled that all e-cigarettes must go through

截至2016年8月，美國食品和藥物管理局 已裁定所有的電子煙必須通過。

a long and expensive application process.

漫長而昂貴的申請過程；

This process could end up costing as much as $1 million per new product.

這個過程最終可能會花費多達 作為每個新產品100萬美元。

While some of the biggest manufacturers will be able to shoulder the costs and navigate

雖然一些最大的製造商將 擔得起，過得去

the regulatory mess, most small e-cigarette companies will be forced out of business.

監管的亂象，大多數小型電子煙的 公司將被迫停業。

With less competition, e-cigarettes will become more expensive, and many people

隨著競爭的減少，電子煙將成為。 比較貴，很多人

will go right back to smoking.

會馬上回去抽菸。

E-cigarette prohibitionists may think they’re using a “better-safe-than-sorry” approach

電子菸禁止者可能認為他們是 慎之又慎

to save consumers from some yet-to-be-discovered danger, but they’re not.

使消費者免受一些尚未發現的問題的影響。 危險，但他們不是。

They’re actually endangering millions of smokers who would make the switch if the e-cigarette

他們實際上是在危害數百萬人 的吸菸者，他們會在電子煙的情況下改用電子煙。

market were allowed to flourish.

市場被允許蓬勃發展。

As Joe Nocera, a New York Times columnist, wrote:

作為《紐約時報》的專欄作家喬-諾塞拉。 寫道：

“Equating smoking cigarettes with inhaling e-cigarettes...is a huge disservice to public health.

"將吸食香菸等同於吸入 電子煙......是對公眾健康的巨大傷害。

On the scale of potential harms, e-cigarettes aren’t even in the same ballpark

在潛在危害的規模上，電子煙 風馬牛不相及

as combustible cigarettes.

作為燃料煙。

They have the potential to save millions of lives.”

它們有可能拯救數百萬人的生命。 生命。"

The government needs to develop a new paradigm for dealing with e-cigarettes – one that ensures

政府需要發展新的模式。 處理電子煙的方法------一個能確保

basic standards but recognizes their relative safety and immense benefit to public health.

基本標準，但認識到它們的相對重要性 安全和對公眾健康的巨大好處。

If they don’t, more people will die.

如果他們不這樣做，就會有更多的人死去。

Imagine that.

想象一下

I’m Caroline Kitchens of the R Street Institute for Prager University.

我是R街研究所的Caroline Kitchens。 為普拉格大學。