It seems that critics of e-cigarettes will stop at nothing to criticize the product. They evenresort to using accidents as an opportunity to create trouble for the growing industry.In the States a big worry is children becoming ill after becoming exposed to e-liquids National statistics have reported that more than 2,700 people have reported exposure toliquid nicotine with over half of those cases in children younger than 6.An article reporting this had of course to mention the overused argument that e-cigarettescome in “brightly colored reflll packages and an array of candy flavors that can make itattractive to young children”They fail to mention of course that e-cigarette companies don’t sell to under-18s, let alonethose under the age of eight. As for the color of the refill packages, what company in theworld wants their product to be placed in dull and uninteresting packaging?Headlines such as: “More kids poisoned by liquid nicotine for e-cigarettes” are suitablydramatic and designed to make the e-cigarette industry look far more dangerous thanit actually is. But the key to the problem is answered by Ashley Webb, director of theKentucky Regional Poison Control Center who says: ““With kids, the exposure we're seeingis usually parents or family members leave out refill bottles that they try and open.So there’s the answer, it’s not a question of e-cigarettes being aimed at young children andcausing serious problems. It’s more the fact that people are being incompetent and leavingtheir refill bottles where children can get hold of them. Figures show that the number ofliquid nicotine exposures is still less than half of traditional cigarettes.While Robert Bassett, a medical toxicologist in Philadelphia, says e-liquid is potentiallymore toxic because it’s in bottles, it simply shows that anyone who has e-liquid needs toadequately look after it. There are calls for child-resistant caps and many manufacturershave already begun using these, so hopefully the industry will look after itself.Meanwhile the Men’s Fitness website came up with one of the most ridiculous statements of the year . They wrote: “Conventional tobacco-packed cigarettes are starting to look saferthan their electronic alternatives.” Absolute garbage of course and we’ll do our best to provethat.Now that crazy sentence was actually followed by one that said: “Kicking your Camels to thecurb in favour of e-cigarettes may provide a “healthier” nicotine buzz” which isn’t too bad acomment really. The focus of the article though was to report an accident, because that’swhat it was, that recently happened in the UK.David Aspinall from Wigan, England, was using an e-cigarette when it overheated, explodedand impaled his legs with shards of metal. He now needs skin grafts to repair the damage.But this was simply an accident as the store that sold Aspinall the e-cigarette blame faultybatteries for the explosion. The same incident could happen with any product that needsa battery but it gives the critics a great chance to criticize the product which of course theygleefully take with open arms.Their article ended with this sentence: “Word of advice: nix the bad habit altogether. Cancerand dismemberment aren’t pleasurable for anyone.” We’re pretty sure the number ofdismemberments among e-cigarette users isn’t going to rise anytime soon and if it does, wellit’ll be down to a probably avoidable accident. The Mirror website reported that Aspinall has now stopped using e-cigarettes and returnedto smoking tobacco as he thinks they are “safer”. His lungs and other vital organs maydecide in time to disagree with that opinion.They also decided to dig up another accident which sadly saw a man die after an e-cigarette exploded and set fire to an oxygen container. It gave the press another chance to linkthe industry with scandal but there was more to the story than any danger presented by e-cigarettes. A fire brigade spokesman revealed that the deceased was using a charger thatwas not the one supplied with the e-cigarette. He added: “We urge people to always useelectrical equipment in accordance with the manufacturer’s instruction and guidance.”It was an unfortunate accident but no reason to scandalize the e-cigarette industry. If theproduct is used properly and the equipment is not faulty then there’s no problem using e-cigarettes.Properly used and maintained e-cigarettes certainly don’t possess the same damagingresults that can be achieved by discarded tobacco cigarettes. There are always concernsabout the number of fires that are caused that way The reporting of accidents linked to e-cigarettes is another typical example of how the mediais dealing with the industry. They love a scandal and even if it’s proved the incident was atotal accident some publications just don’t care. It’s just another chance to moan about oneof their favourite targets.