Guest Column

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Dear Editor:

I am writing to you today as man who has recently quit smoking thanks to the nicotine vaporizer. I have smoked for over 25 years and have tried quitting a few times in the past with no success. But this time I was able to do it, so far. I quit cold turkey on December 28th and that day was tolerable. But, the next day, I was irritable and eating everything in sight to try and calm my nerves, and overcome oral fixation. After 3 days of this I decided I needed help. I would gain 30 pounds or more if I kept going down this path, like I had done, the last time I tried to quit smoking – and still couldn’t quit. So I went to the KC Vapes store on Metcalf and bought a vaporizer with the maximum amount of nicotine available. I hadn’t done any research on vaporizers, I just knew I needed something to help with the cravings.

After using the vaporizer for a while I have started to do some research on them, and I found that the liquid used to vaporize is made mostly of alcohol. Though that is about as far as I have gotten so far, manufacturers don’t put their recipe online. I think they are safe, but that is just an assumption at this point. I would hope they are safer than cigarettes, but I just can’t confirm that right now. It appears that there is very little regulation regarding vaporizing units and the liquid made for them as of this letter. That is what leads me to this letter.

I recently looked up the policy regarding “tobacco free campus” and found that JCCC has not banned vaporizers, since they are a smoking cessation device and not a tobacco product. I wanted to give them credit for this and thank them for allowing me the chance to complete my studies, without having to make a 20 minute round trip to my car to take a few puff every few hours. The administration could have just put a blanket policy in place, banning anything and everything that had nicotine in it, the patch, the gum, as well as items that do actually contain tobacco. But, they didn’t, they are allowing us to help ourselves and control our fates. It is a very progressive move on their part to leave it up to us, the student body, to decide what is best for us. And I just wanted to thank them. Thank you JCCC Administration!

Patrick Mckown

JCCC student

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