Advertisement Health officials call for more regulation of e-cigarettes Advocates for smoke-free devices say they're healthier than smoking Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A push is on to regulate electronic cigarettes as health officials raise concerns about their safety.Click here to watch News 9's report.Last week, the Food and Drug Administration announces plans to regulate e-cigarettes, banning sales to those under 18 and requiring nicotine warning labels. Their makers would eventually have to disclose the ingredients.The move comes at a time when poison control centers are reporting more calls about people overusing or ingesting the liquid nicotine contained in the devices."Vaping," as it's called, has become an increasingly popular way to get a nicotine fix without smoking. E-cigarettes have soared in popularity in the past few years.The devices have been marketed as a healthier alternative to smoking, but that claim has been controversial and debated."What we know right now is electronic cigarettes are not a regulated product by the FDA, so no one really knows what the full list of ingredients is in that synthetic nicotine," said Tricia Tilley of the state Department of Health and Human Services.The liquid nicotine used in e-cigarettes comes in different colors and flavors, and health officials said that's part of the problem. They believe that attracts children, who are tempted to try them.There have been eight calls to poison control centers in New Hampshire related to e-cigarettes since 2010 and 37 across New England. Most of those calls involved adults, but 15 were for children under the age of 5. Three involved teenagers."Some have had mild effects, but some have had more moderate impacts," Tilley said.Those effects are similar to an overdose: rapid heartbeat, elevated blood pressure, nausea and vomiting.But e-cigarette advocates dispute the concern the liquid nicotine is a danger."Fortunately, the problem itself is not that dire," said Carl V. Phillips of Consumer Advocates for Smoke-Free Alternatives Association. "It's incredibly difficult to poison yourself on e-cigarette liquid to an extent that is health-threatening."Phillips is the scientific director of CASAA. He said it would basically take a beer mug full of liquid nicotine to kill an adult and proportionally less for a child. He said there's not as much nicotine in an e-cigarette as people might think.Many bottles of liquid nicotine do indicate the nicotine concentration. But health officials said that without regulations, it's impossible to know if manufacturers are being truthful."There is a nicotine level on all the bottles," said Deb Tickel, owner of XSmoke Vape Smart in the Steeplegate Mall. "It goes from zero to 24. The numbers do go further, but I only go up to 24."Tickel said the fear and negativity surrounding the product come from a lack of education."We let them know that every six to 10 puffs is the equivalent to a cigarette," she said.She said she checks identification and doesn't like to sell to high-schoolers, even if they are 18.Tickel and Phillips said it's a parent's responsibility to keep liquid nicotine out of the reach of children.Tickel opened her store about five months ago. She's a former smoker who was turned onto e-cigarettes when her aunt was diagnosed with lung cancer."It took me three days," she said. "On the third day, I decided to put the cigarettes away, and I haven't had a cigarette (since then). It was a year ago on April 7."Tickel said she feels healthier and has helped covert 250 people from smoking to smoke-less."These are such low risks that the risks are down in the area of everyday hazards, like eating dessert, in terms of how much it affects your health," Phillips said. "It is nothing at all like cigarettes."Tilley said regulation will help consumers gauge the risk for themselves."Once there is some regulation on these products, which there seems to be coming down the path, we will have a better understanding of the ingredients and what the long-term and short-term health impacts are, either by poisoning or simply by using these products," she said.There will be a 75-day public comment period before any FDA rules would be finalized.E-cigarette makers would also have two years to submit applications to allow their products to remain on the market.