Forget what you've heard about the safety of e-cigarettes. The truth is if you are using electronic cigarettes, you are using a device to ingest nicotine that is much safer than traditional cigarettes. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise.

If you need proof of this, try lighting up a traditional cigarette. I dare you. First of all, it's going to throw you off if you have been using e-cigarettes or electronic cigarettes all this time. It's a completely different operation. You basically take out a pack and you take out a stick from the pack. You then light it up. 

What's wrong with this picture? If you've been using e-cigs all this time, you know that you load it with a liquid and the unit heats itself up. There is no open flame. Second, when you take in the vapor created by the heating coil inside the electronic cigarette, there is one compound that is not created. 

This makes all the difference in the world when it comes to comparing old school traditional cigarettes with the electronic variety. What am I talking about? Tar. If you are clueless regarding what Tar is, please understand that it is something that's created when you burn plant material. 

It doesn't matter what kind of herbal material you're burning. Maybe it's tobacco or it's marijuana or Kratom. Whatever it is that you're burning, tar is created. Tar is bad news. If you need proof of this, just look at the black stuff being laid on the asphalt road that you travel on. If you have a car and you do any kind of driving, chances are you have come across black tar top roads.  

The stuff that's on those roads is the stuff you're putting in your lungs when you smoke a traditional cigarette. There are no two ways about this. I don't say this to shock you. I don't say this to scandalize you. But this is the absolute truth.

• When you burn any kind of herbal materials, tar is a by-product.

Imagine painting that substance on the most sensitive part of your body. I am, of course, talking about the thin inner lining of your lungs. People are shocked that after many years of smoking, they develop lung cancer. It shouldn't be a big mystery.

• When you smoke a cigarette, you're pumping tar into your system.

You only need to look at the autopsy pictures of people who smoke traditional cigarettes and people who don't smoke. It's like day and night. One set of lungs is all brown, or even black because of the tar and the other set of lungs is a nice healthy pink. Which would you rather have? Which set of lungs do you think leads to better health?

This is why a lot of people have been turned on to electronic cigarettes. When you use an electronic cigarette, you let go of tar. You get out from under the nasty negative health consequences of painting that toxic biochemical compound on the most sensitive part of your body. 

Whether you're wheezing, coughing uncontrollably or suffering from itchy lungs, you know what to blame. Tar is bad news. When you use electronic cigarettes, you use a device that creates vapor out of your electronic liquid. You go straight to the source. 

Now you and I both know that you're using electronic cigarettes to pump nicotine throughout your system. If you're going to do that, why not do it in a healthy way? Why not just use an electronic cigarette? 

If we're on the same page, the next question turns on how to shop for the right ecig. Since more and more people are realizing the tremendous health benefits of this particular nicotine ingestion device, the market is simply flooded with all sorts of contraptions, gadgets, and devices.

It's really hard to make heads or tails of all these devices unless you have some sort of system or method for telling them apart. The problem is just like with all other consumers, you worked hard for your money. It really would be a shame if you were to separate from your money for no good reason.

Unfortunately, there's just so many different ecig product varieties out there that it's too easy to end up with the wrong product. You may be thinking that you're not really spending all that much money because a lot of these ecig products and electronic cigarettes devices, as well as vape pens and other e-cig accessories, are fairly affordable.

Fair enough. In the big scheme of things, you're not really losing all that much money when you make one bad call. The problem is if you make one bad call after another and you can't seem to make the right decision as far as the right electronic and nicotine ingestion device to buy, all those bad decisions can catch up to you.

Sure you may be spending $30 or $50 at a time. But all those purchases can set you back because all that money does add up. Let's put it this way. You worked hard for your money. You traded in a tremendous amount of time, effort and energy to make the cash that you make. It really would be sad if you were so casual in the ecig purchases that you end up burning a hole through your pocket.  

You don't have to do that. Just pay attention to the consumer guide below so you can make a truly informed decision. When you make a decision based on solid information, the chances of you regretting your decision get lower.

I'm not saying this is guaranteed to work for all people at all times under all circumstances. But believe me, this is so much better than just taking a random shot in the dark and hoping for the very best. Unfortunately, that's exactly the kind of thing many electronic cigarette buyers do.

It doesn't matter how long they've been using this device. They end up finding themselves in the same place. They're basically taking a chance with one new brand after another. You have to understand that the market is flooded. There just seems to be so many different options out there and it's just so easy to lose your money. 

So how exactly do you shop for the right electronic cigarette device? How do you tell all these online stores apart? How can you be sure that you have bought the right product?

Pay close attention to the following product features:

Does it have the right weight?

Different users have different preferences when it comes to device weight. Maybe you're always on the go. Maybe you're a very busy person. Perhaps you don't have a fixed schedule. In that situation, you need something that is very lightweight. It has to be so lightweight that you don't even notice it. this seems like a pretty straightforward feature, but it isn't.

There are many different products out there with many different weight profiles. You may be thinking that the difference may be a gram here and there. But believe me. If you are really busy or you normally carry a lot of stuff on your person, you will feel every extra unwanted gram. 

Do yourself a big favor and pay close attention to the weight of the devices that you're thinking of buying and see if it fits with the general electronic cigarette lifestyle that you have. 

Portability 

Some e-cig devices, like ecig pipes, have many different parts. You actually have to assemble them or you have to make some adjustments for you to use them. If you're just going to stay at home and you are sure that you're really not going to be moving from point A to point B when you are using this device, such complicated contraptions shouldn't be a problem for you.

It doesn't really take much of a commitment. It doesn't slow you down. Using such devices are not going to cramp your style. But if you plan to use electronic cigarettes on the road or you're a very busy person, its lack of portability might be a sticking point.

In fact, the longer you use that device, the more you become painfully aware of just how big of a factor portability is. Don't underestimate the importance of portability. You want something that you can take out, use and quickly pack away.

This is especially true if you are using your ecig to ingest substances that may not be completely legal in your jurisdiction. I am, of course, talking about CBD oil or other marijuana extracted biochemical compounds. 

Now we all know that the active ingredient in marijuana is THC. But even if you are not ingesting THC with you ecig, you might still end up in legal hot water. That's why a little bit of portability paired with a compact footprint can go a long way in avoiding unnecessary legal headaches. 

Compact Design

Some users don't really care about the size of their device. They just want a solid draw. They just want a device that produces a lot of vapor and does the job the first time around. Others are willing to sacrifice a little bit of drawing power and overall potency in exchange for a small footprint. 

As mentioned above, if you are not very careful, chances are you might land in legal hot water if you are using your device to ingest compounds that are in a legal gray area in your jurisdiction. 

If your neck of the woods hasn't passed a medical marijuana law, a compassionate use act or has taken the extraordinary step of legalizing the recreational use of marijuana and marijuana-based compounds, you may be experiencing serious legal headaches down the road. Who wants to hassle with that?

That's why a little bit of compact design can definitely go a long way to keep you clear of any legal complications. 

Ease of cleaning

A lot of electronic cigarette users are completely blind to this. They think that as long as they buy the right accessories like the ecig batteries or the right ejuice or eliquid combination that they are in the right place. They think that it all pretty much falls into place and they don't have to worry about the day to day aspects of maintenance.

Well, they have another thing coming because you have to understand that while you're not creating tar with your electronic nicotine ingestion device, it still needs to be cleaned. Whenever you use any kind of liquid compound, whether it contains nicotine or some other biochemical compound like CBD, this residue piles up.

You might not be able to see it with a naked eye the first few times you use your ecig pipe or other devices. But believe me. After enough usage, it becomes abundantly clear. In fact, it can get so bad that it seems that your ecig is no longer working. 

It may well turn out that you just need to give it a nice cleaning. This might seem pretty straightforward. It might even seem like common sense. But the problem is if the design of the device gets in the way of ease of cleaning, what do you think will happen?

That's right. You're probably not going to be all that motivated to clean your device and before you know it, it's so sticky and clogged that you decide to give up on it and buy a new device. Now, this might save you a lot of time. But eventually, all those discarded electronic cigarettes can pack quite a financial punch.

They're not exactly disposable. Do yourself a big favor. Pay close attention to this practical concern. It may not be top of mind to you. But residue does pile up and accumulate over time and it can cause serious headaches down the road. 

Cosmetic issues

A lot of people who use electronic cigarettes are not really all that caught up in making a fashion statement. They're not really out there to make a spectacle of themselves. In fact, most of them are just simply looking for a quick in and out a solution to their need for a nice surge of nicotine. Fair enough.

But you have to understand that everything you use is a reflection of your personality. It really would suck for you to give out the wrong signals because the color, design and the overall impression people get out of your ecig doesn't really match the persona that you're trying to project for yourself.

I know this might seem shallow. But you have to understand that people do judge books by their cover. A little bit of extra time spent in making sure that you buy the right pipe and ecig composite equipment made up of the right materials and accessories can go a long way. 

Remember, this is all part of an overall alternative lifestyle. Finally, make sure you pick a device that you can use for an extended period of time. The longer the life of the product, the greater of a bargain it is.

Let's put it this way. Even if something costs only $10, if you only get to use it twice, is going to be a very expensive device indeed. Focus on the total cost of each usage of a device gives you.