I am 61 years old and have smoked cigarettes since I was 16. The amount varied over the years: sometimes less than 1/2 pack a day, sometimes over a pack. I made serious efforts to quit smoking in the 80’s, probably about 5, but was never successful. I did quit for a year in the 80’s by using snuff as a substitute but I started smoking cigarettes again. Thereafter I used snuff as a substitute to reduce the number of cigarettes I smoked daily but I did not quit smoking cigarettes. About 3 years ago a co-worker who was using an electronic cigarette got me interested in them and I purchased my first unit in 2010. I did not quit smoking cigarettes at that point but using the electronic cigarette allowed me to reduce my consumption of cigarettes to less than 5 per day. I did quit using snuff as a result of using the E-cigarette. I spent a few years trying various models of e-cigarettes until I found a model that met my needs (this was in September of 2013). Equipped with the right technology I bought my last pack of cigarettes in early September and by the first of October 2013 I was not smoking cigarettes at all and have not a had a tobacco cigarette since then. I can’t say enough good things about the e-cigarette. My lungs seem clearer now than they ever have been. I have always been active, even a runner, but as I grew older it was clear that smoking was impacting this. If I got a cold I would sometimes get bronchitis that would linger for weeks. Since I switched to the E cigarette all of this has changed. My wind is much improved and I actually completed a half-marathon last October. Too soon to tell perhaps, but I went through this winter without getting a cold. I know that there are a lot of concerns about e-cigarettes but speaking as a life-long nicotine addict to me it seems they are not any more harmful than any other nicotine replacement strategy. And since they mimic perfectly the act of smoking I think they are probably the best substitute for someone who has spent a long time smoking cigarettes. I frankly cannot understand the furor over them if the goal is to reduce harm from smoking cigarettes. And it does seem quite the logical disconnect to allow any and all other forms of nicotine delivery (cigarettes, pipes, cigars, gum, chewing tobacco, nicotine inhalers, the patch) and zero in on this device as being particularly harmful. It does not make sense from a public health standpoint. Since I transitioned completely to the E cigarette I estimated that I have avoided smoking somewhere upwards of 1,800 cigarettes. That is a lot of tar and other chemicals that I have not ingested.