By CHRISSY SMITH
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – Taking a smoke break now has a whole new meaning.
Electronic or e-cigarettes have made their way to the United States and are helping many longtime smokers kick the habit with a much safer alternative.
Eric Frichter and his two sons own and operate two electronic cigarette stores in Slidell called Esmoke Vapors, with one location on Gause Boulevard and the other on Pontchartrain Drive.
E-cigarettes are devices designed to mimic cigarettes. The metal tubes used are designed to look like real cigarettes and contain a cartridge filled with a nicotine-laced liquid that is vaporized by a battery-powered heating element. The nicotine vapor is inhaled by smokers when they draw on the device, as they would a regular cigarette. At Esmoke Vapors, the e-cigarettes can come with or without nicotine and contain no carcinogen, which is the substance involved in causing cancer, according to Frichter.
Electronic cigarettes come in a variety of flavors, nicotine levels, and varieties, all claiming to be a less dangerous alternative to smoking cigarettes, and are flooding the market.
“I was in the tobacco business with my dad for 20 years, but we started to notice the decline in smoking and the increase in vaping,” Frichter said.
He and his dad, George, ran Smokey’s Tobacco in Pearl River, and now that George is retired, Eric decided to try a new and healthier venture.
“Tobacco has such a bad stigma, and it should. Because of that, people are being cautious with vaping, but we only have four ingredients in our products,” Eric said.
The first product is propylene glycol, which is an FDA approved preservative; the second is a vegetable glycerin, which creates the vapor and sweetness; the third is FDA approved flavoring; and the fourth is nicotine.
“This has been in Europe and Asia for 10 years already, but it has only been in the United States for about four to five years,” Eric said.
The Esmoke Vapors owner and his two sons, 24-year-old Andrew and 20-year-old Ian, work full time at the shop. None are smokers, but Andrew does vape with an e-cigarette sometimes. Most recently, he was using the peach cobbler flavor in his product.
Frichter said his sister used to smoke, but now only uses e-cigarettes.
“We have people come in here who used to smoke two packs a day, and all they do is smoke the electronic cigarettes now. They say they can breathe better and feel better,” Andrew said.
While nicotine in the vaporized cigarettes is still addictive, Eric said it is much healthier because there is no cancerous product in it. Also, the FDA recently passed a law saying a person has to be at least 18 years of age to purchase an e-cigarette, and Eric said he agrees with that.
“It’s imitating the act of smoking, but it’s not dangerous. When you smoke with nicotine, it is like being addicted to caffeine – you feel a need to have it every day. Since the big tobacco companies essentially got caught duping the public 20 years ago into believing that smoking cigarettes was safe, there is a lot of extra caution here with the FDA wanting to put their stamp of approval on it yet,” Eric said.
His wife of 27 years, Carol, was happy about her husband’s decision to invest and said they do extensive research on every product they buy. In fact, everything is purchased in the United States.
“We sell higher-end products here and our products can be serviced right here. We are happy for a healthier advantage and are pleased to see how many people this product is helping,” Eric said.
Emoke Vapors on Gause is located at 1207 Eastridge Dr. in Slidell and can be reached at 985-326-8500. The other location, Vape Pro Shop, is at 3275 Pontchartrain Dr. and can be reached at 985-249-4691.