•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   
•    EYEWITNESS   

They may not put you at risk of lung cancer, but e-cigarettes — or electronic nicotine delivery systems — could be more dangerous for your health, the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) warned on Friday.

Danardi Sosrosumihardjo, the director of the agency’s narcotics and additive substances monitoring division, said the devices were a new concern.

“This product is illegal but can be bought directly [from vendors] or over the Internet,” he said.

The e-cigarettes, or ENDS, are also called ecigaro, electro-smoke, green cig and smart smoker, and are being peddled in various places in the country.

A health worker named Kiki told the Jakarta Globe on Friday someone had offered him one of the e-cigarettes for Rp 100,000 ($11) at a canteen in the Health Ministry’s office in South Jakarta.

“I was shocked to see the cigarettes being sold in a place like that,” Kiki said. “I did not buy it because I know they are poison.

“The seller told me he charges up to Rp 300,000 [$33] for an electronic cigarette.”

Danardi said his agency also found the products in Makassar, South Sulawesi, Semarang in central Java, Lampung and Palembang, South Sumatra.

Danardi said the e-cigarettes were produced in China and had been on sale there since 2003. “We still don’t know exactly when the products entered Indonesia,” he said.

E-cigarettes don’t burn, but use a small lithium battery that atomizes a liquid solution of nicotine. The person inhales a vapor similar to the “stage fog” used in stage productions. A tiny red light at the tip lights up with each drag, like the ember of a real cigarette.

Danardi said the e-cigarettes were dangerous because their content was not fully known. “It says that it contains 1 percent nicotine,” he said, holding up an e-cigarette still in its wrapper.

“But the sellers are also selling nicotine refills,” he added.

Nicotine in refillable cartridges is sometimes referred to as “e-liquid” or “e-juice.” They also contained flavoring such as coffee, chocolate and fruit.

Danardi said e-cigarettes he found in Surabaya cost between Rp 140,000 and Rp 190,000, with refills costing Rp 40,000. The set included a battery and a charger.

The e-cigarettes consisted of nicotine dissolved in propylene glycol or glycerin. Both are common food additives.

Danardi said this could lead to uncontrollable nicotine concentrations in the body. “The concentration of nicotine that enters the body can get out of hand and the person can suffer nicotine poisoning,” he said.

“We still cannot classify them as cigarettes or drugs as the ingredients remain unclear.

“We are communicating with the Customs and Excise Agency as well as the Ministry of Trade.”