Electronic cigarettes are handheld devices capable of turning nicotine and other flavors or chemicals into vapor. Hence instead of smoke, this electronic device has been designed to produce vapor and that is exactly why using it is called vaping and not smoking. They are also called electronic nicotine delivery systems or e-cigarettes and are operated with the help of battery. These devices could resemble everyday items like cigars, pipes, USB memory sticks, pens, fillable tanks or even traditional cigarettes in their design and looks.

Electronic cigarettes are different from traditional cigarettes in the sense that do not burn tobacco but instead contain nicotine, flavorings and other chemicals filled cartridges. The e-cigarette when operated transforms the liquid chemicals into steam or vapor which is then inhaled by the user. However, emerging in the markets only in 2008, among the various nicotine-delivery products e-cigarettes are comparatively new. Hence conclusive evidence about the health impacts, safety, effectiveness and long term use of electronic cigarettes are also relatively less. Therefore our focus is currently on how much has been already known about the electronic cigarettes and their effects on human body because that is the only way we can presently determine their usefulness.

As e-cigarettes produce a vapor and not a tobacco smoke, the user gets less nicotine out of them as compared to a traditional cigarette, which is why a puff on an e-cigarette is considered less dangerous. However, there exist certain practical shortcomings in trying to encourage the use of e-cigarettes as a safer alternative because as per data about 70 to 90 percent of people using cigarettes are dual users, meaning they use both e-cigarettes and the traditional ones. This can be indicative of the fact that instead of helping you quit smoking conventional cigarettes, electronic cigarettes might encourage you to smoke them longer once. The less nicotine from e-cigarettes might actually make it more difficult to quit the tobacco cigarette because the satisfaction drawn from the latter might seem higher.

Irrespective of the consideration of the amount of nicotine in either types of the cigarettes one should always remember the effect nicotine has on human body as a cardiovascular stimulant which can conveniently worsen an already severe heart condition. Though there is no agreement on the fact that whether nicotine can lead to heart problems among people who otherwise have a healthy heart but there is substantial evidence of its negative effects on blood vessels which would put a cigarette user at a greater risk of a heart attack. It can therefore be admitted that if there is a choice between electronic cigarettes and conventional tobacco cigarettes, the former is the clear winner but it is only the safer option between the two and not devoid of side effects in any way.