Stop Smoking Articles

submitted: Feb 8th 2010 | by: MaryKayRivers | Total views: 4 | Word Count: 626 | |

A well used ashtray was a prominent feature on every office desk twenty or thirty years ago. Ten years ago there might be a non smoking sign displayed on the wall but the supervisor would quickly produce an ashtray from his desk drawer for any visitor asking to smoke and would close the office door and indulge in a smoke himself on occasion. Today a request to smoke in a place of business would expose you to a sharp "no" and critical looks from those around you.

You may still find some break rooms offered by large company where smoking and non-smoking sections coexist. Government employees have long been required to leave the building before lighting up. A small group of employees getting a nicotine "fix" is often noticed by those entering a building. Workplaces that are not polluted with second hand smoke are cleaner and smell better. Another benefit is the reduction in fire hazard when burning tobacco products aren't permitted.

Most smokers no longer complain when they are required to leave the building to smoke. They often find the need to defend themselves against non-smokers who complain even when workers are smoking out of doors. This has led businesses to establish outdoor smoking areas with seating and protection from the sun. These areas are often a feature of businesses with sufficient outdoor space to permit separating the smoking area from the business entrance.

Employees who frequently leave their desk to smoke are detrimental to the bottom line of their employer. Even a 10 minute absence requires the employee to lose more work time as he re-focuses on the work he was doing before the break. Phones aren't answered and non-smoking co-workers often resent breaks taken by smokers. Offers to provide help for employees who want to quit smoking have been creatively used by businesses. Offers pf cash awards, free counseling and free nicotine replacement products to encourage smokers to quit were well received. CEO's with less compassion simply instituted strict policies that prohibit smoking at work.

The tens of thousands of dollars spend by businesses to help employees stop smoking was effective in the beginning. Workers jumped at the chance for free counseling and free nicotine replacement products to help them quit. As time went on, the only smokers left were those who were highly addicted or who had no desire to quit their tobacco habit. Allowing the use of electronic cigarettes at the workplace could be an answer to the problems posed for employers by determined cigarette smokers.

Electronic cigarettes produce a vapor that quickly dissipates like steam and is not harmful to anyone in the smoker's vicinity. Walls and ceilings do not become dark with the tar from tobacco smoke in a room where e-cigs are used. Nasty odors released by the chemical compounds of burning tobacco are totally absent with e-cigarettes. The use of e-cigs in an office environment would seem a logical way to meet the needs of smokers without any effects to other workers. Unlike other nicotine replacement products, e-cigarettes are not invisible. The use of electronic cigarettes in the office may be an acceptable practice in the future.

The e-cig looks like a cigarette but may also be shaped like a ball point pen. Many brands closely resemble the tobacco version they are designed to replace and that image alone can cause a negative reaction among those who oppose smoking. The biggest hurdle will be meeting the objections of those who are against any form of nicotine use whether safe or not.

The benefits of using e-cigarettes as a tobacco alternative are becoming more widely known and understood. The popularity of the products is exploding and it's very possible that only a few years in the future e-cigarettes will be totally accepted in the office.

About the Author

Mary Kay Rivers has become an acclaimed expert on all facets of e-cigs. Her publications about a perfect tobacco-free world and about the best electronic cigarette are very popular.

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