I was a cigarette smoker for 25 years. During that time, I developed both asthma and ulcerative colitis. I was going through about one asthma inhaler a month and I tried quitting more than a few times. As some may know, but I imagine most do not, researchers have found a connection between ulcerative colitis and nicotine. Smokers tend to be less likely to develop ulcerative colitis. If they do (as in my case), the condition is normally less severe than in non-smokers. I’ve been told by two of the gastroenterologists I’ve seen, that they’ve even prescribed the nicotine patch for non-smokers suffering from colitis. Smokers suffering from colitis often see an increase in attacks of colitis and the severity of these attacks when they quit smoking. So that was my predicament. Because of my asthma, I had to quit, but when I tried going ƒ??cold turkeyƒ?, I would suffer painful, incapacitating attacks of colitis. I tried all the nicotine replacement therapies; nicotine gum burned my mouth, the patch either was not strong enough, or made the muscles under the patch ache, and the inhaler irritated my throat, and would often trigger an asthma attack. Knowing I had to quit, I even gave each one a second try, but each time I found myself back on cigarettes. I had resigned myself to quitting without a nicotine replacement, and having my colitis become much worse. I had always been able to treat my colitis with one of the weaker drugs prescribed for it. My fear was that I would have to go on steroids in order to treat it. Then, about six months ago, I was talking to my neighbor and he told me about electronic cigarettes. He showed me the ƒ??e-cigƒ? he was using. I told him about the situation I was in, and he lent me his spare e-cig. I quit smoking a week later. The electronic cigarette had everything I had come to be dependent on in tobacco cigarettes; the habit of holding and puffing something, portability, and most importantly, nicotine. My body did experience a mild shock from quitting tobacco, as all smokers bodies do. I did have a mild attack of colitis, but I was able to successfully treat it with my usual medication, and I havenƒ??t had another attack since. As far as my asthma, Iƒ??m down to one inhaler every three months, and my condition continues to improve. Electronic cigarettes have saved me from two debilitating diseases. I have been able to free myself from tobacco, vastly improving my asthma, and have not suffered from reoccurring, severe colitis attacks. While most smokers do not suffer from either one of these diseases, much less both, electronic cigarettes offer real hope for people like me.