The Advocates: Bringing Safety Back

Protect yourself and your partner. Safer sex is the key to staying healthy and stopping the HIV epidemic in its tracks. With the way the economy is today, your health is the one area of your life that you need to invest into. If you are sexually active, even if it is with the same partner, it is recommended that you get tested for the 6 most common sexually transmitted diseases and infections. This will help promote honesty within relationships and can possibly cut down on infidelity. When it comes to your health, don’t be at risk of not knowing, or knowing too late.

The traditional cigarette contains over 4,000 lethal ingredients including Arsenic, Cyanide, Tar and Formaldehyde. Cigarettes kill more people per year than car and motor cycle accidents, AIDS, fire and Homicides - combined. The electronic cigarette or (e-cig) contains 20 ingredients. In the case of diethylene glycol this was indeed found in trace elements by one particular manufacturer out of China. Most of the liquid produced in the United States (known as e-juice) is a Vegetable Glycerine cleared as safe and found in an abundance of food, medications and other products we ingest without harmful side effects whatsoever. The e-cig is for people who either can't quit smoking or have no desire to quit smoking. As a 30 year 2 pack a day smoker, I now use an e-cig and feel 100% better. My Partner of 21 years, a pack a day smoker for 20 years has made the same transition. Dr. Spinelli fails in his brief article to mention that the FDA The FDA failed to present standard protocols for proper study design with regards to the testing of the referenced control devices. * The chemical content of similar nicotine-containing, FDA-approved products was not completely described with respect to the presence of tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) and other tobacco-associated impurities that have also been found in nicotine replacement therapy devices at similar, if not higher, levels. * In the lots tested by the FDA, none of the chemicals of concern in the study were able to be quantifiably measured in the liquid of the device’s cartridges. * Data presented in the report does not adequately support the opinion that users of the products would actually be exposed to TSNA’s and tobacco-specific impurities in the vapor phase during normal use and if exposed, that those levels would be a health concern as compared to other FDA-approved products. Despite efforts to make people quit smoking 29% of adults over 18 still smoke. More than 1 million American smokers unable to quit are desperately looking for a safer alternative to cigarettes - and have found one in the e-cig. "We have every reason to believe the hazard posed by electronic cigarettes would be much lower than 1% of that posed by (tobacco) cigarettes. The testing guidelines in the current tobacco act (circulating through Congress) would represent a ban on electronic cigarettes, (yet) if we get all tobacco smokers to switch from regular cigarettes (to electronic cigarettes), we would eventually reduce the US death toll from more than 400,000 a year to less than 4,000, maybe as low as 400.” - Joel Niztkin, Association of Public Health Physicians "This is about as idiotic and irrational an approach as I have ever seen in my 22 years in tobacco control and public health. A public policy maker who touts himself as being a champion of the public’s health as well as some of the leading national health advocacy organizations is demanding that we ban what is clearly a much safer cigarette than those on the market, but that we allow, protect, approve and institutionalize the really toxic ones.” Dr .Michael Siegal - University of Boston Public Health "Huge disparities and inconsistencies exist between the tobacco and nicotine product regulations. Combustible tobacco products are the least regulated and nicotine products are the most highly regulated. Given the huge differences in the proven or likely hazards of these products to individual and public health, this represents a substantial and illogical regulatory imbalance. The regulation of nicotine products needs to be radically overhauled to encourage the use of less harmful products.” - Royal College of Physicians "Nicotine is probably the second most used drug after caffeine. Amazingly, no one thinks of caffeine as a harmful drug. Nor should they. The possible dangers of nicotine are dwarfed by the dangers associated with tobacco. Pure nicotine has not been associated with the risk of cancer.” David Sweanor, University of Ottawa Perhaps the next time Dr.Spinelli pens an article - he'll do a bit of research beforehand. Peter Suslock

Advocate, I brought safety back to my home town along with years of experience on Adult Gay Male issues and I am treated as if I've spent my life behind bars. it's sad that this town is dying in front of our poloticians eyes and they have not even established a since of urgency concerning this. With health care the way it is and americans divided why not let those of us whom are able and willing be the Facilitators for our gay brother's, in and environment that will build their self esteem, and save their life while they train their minds to gain employment even if it is just taking out the trash. A job is a job, and will build most anyone's character if they have a humble spirit and believe that this particular job is a stepping stone to better opportunities. A good example: Mike Rowe's Dirty Jobs! Even though we as Americans say we have equality we don't. I've lost everything economically by helping my heterosexual family. And they have treated me like the scum of the earth.