Skeptical Kiwi

Vaping http://vaping360.com/cloud-chasing-101/ Most people now know that smoking is pretty bad for you. The science has been clear on that for quite some time now (Eysenck, 2000; Ambrose & Barua, 2004). What with the emphysema, cancers, heart disease and all of that stuff. E-cigarettes (ECs) and vaping is an alternative that has been around since 2004, and have shown to be a significant decrease in health risks and a proven cessation method. Vaping at a glance Vaping, for those unfamiliar with the practice, isn't smoke. A user inhales vapour through a device that produces the vapour. It's an aerosol created by heating up the e-liquid inside the device. The e-liquid is much safer than tobacco smoking, with a much smaller list of chemicals, mainly a mixture of vegetable glycerin and propylene glycol, flavourings and the optional nicotine. The nicotine can be added anywhere from 0mg up to 18mg (DIY juices can be higher). There is a myriad of flavours to choose fro

Here in New Zealand, we have a pretty good track record of scientific mindedness. Most people I know in real life are fairly like-minded individuals. The people I work with are the same, we accept scientific consensus of evidence. But, go on facebook and check the comment section of an article written in a pro-science light, and you would be shocked (or not, depending on your knowledge of general ignorance) to find that there is a large number of people who disagree and even think science is pure belief. Now, obviously, this is wrong. Science has nothing to do with belief. Science is about evidence. Facts.  Generally, these articles that are written in a pro-science light are about vaccination, for some reason a highly debated topic. It shouldn't be. Vaccines are safe.  Here is a small selection of pro-vaccine stories from Stuff: http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/health/92966563/to-facilitate-antivaccine-rhetoric-as-debate-is-dangerous-and-wrong?cid=facebook.post.9296656

Success What would happen to the road-toll if drink-driving became an individual choice? Vaccines are the greatest success of modern science, yet, they’re still an individual choice in New Zealand. They’re safe, effective and necessary for a healthy population. Vaccines eradicated smallpox (Koplow, 2003) and controlled polio, tetanus, measles, varicella, HPV and pertussis. Unimmunised children are a health risk to the entire community (Omer, Salmon, Orenstein, Dehart, & Halsey, 2009). Schools are environments where infectious diseases spread quickly, so a high coverage is needed to keep a population safe, known as herd immunity (Ministry of Health, 2017a; Fine, 1993). When the coverage drops, infectious diseases spread quickly and lead to outbreaks (Hayman, Marshall, French, & Carpenter, 2017). Unimmunised children should not be allowed to attend schools in New Zealand. Freedom of Choice The issue with mandating anything is that the government is then taking away