Electronic cigarettes let you smoke without all the smoke

Jana Shortal, CNN

Tools

By Tiffany Griffin

Story Created: May 27, 2008 at 11:50 AM EST

Story Updated: May 27, 2008 at 12:20 PM EST

Cigarettes are already outlawed in Indiana restaurants and now Michigan is considering a similar smoking ban.

But in Minneapolis, some smokers have found a way around the ban.

Brace yourselves smokers, there is a new way to inhale the heater and it's perfectly legal to do it in a bar.

“You simply draw on the end and it produces a vapor,” explained Bill Bartkowski of E-Cigarette.

The electronic cigar and cigarette is here. It produces a vapor — like smoke — and gives the user nicotine — like a real cigarette — but it doesn't produce secondhand smoke.

“Nothing is ignited. Nothing burns and there are none of the 4,000 harmful chemicals that are in secondhand smoke,” said Bartok's.

The company that sells these devices has a home office in south Minneapolis — and it's hoping the smokeless bar owners buy into the idea.

“I think in the long term it’s a pretty good deal for everyone,” said bar owner Dave Payne.

The cigar is disposable and can last 30 to 40 days. It costs about $50. The cigarette system is $150 and the nicotine is sold in replaceable cartridges that run about $5 per unit. Each cartridge is the equivalent to nearly two packs of regular cigarettes.

“I think initially our goal is to provide a middle ground for the smoker and non-smoker,” said Bartkowski.

What he means by that is a non-smoker can really sit next to someone using it and it's not all that offensive. It doesn't stink, like smoke can, and it doesn't cloud the air. As far as health risks … Bartkowski isn't getting into that debate.

“We don't make any claims with respect to the health of the user,” said Bartkowski.

The E-smoking devices are exempt from the smoking ban but the state says it's up to the individual bar or restaurant owners to decide if it will allow you to use them in their establishments.

For more information on the electronic cigarette, click here.

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