Saw this article recently on Alex.co.za
https://alexnews.co.za/132198/medical-evidence-suggests-vaping-harmful-cigarette-smoking/
Here’s a part of the article:
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Medical evidence suggests vaping could be as harmful as cigarette smoking
While the risks and merits of e-cigarettes – or vaping – continue to be fiercely contested, medical evidence is stacking up to suggest that vaping could be as harmful as cigarette smoking.
Dr David Christiani, study author and professor of environmental genetics at the Harvard School of Public Health said people should not assume e-cigarettes were safe, calling for better education and more regulation.
“There needs to be much stronger regulation of the production and purity of the compounds used in e-cigarettes,” he said.
The research conducted at the Harvard School of Public Health included the examination of 75 popular e-cigarette products, including 37 single-use cartridges and 38 e-liquids from the top 10 selling United States brands.
“Seventeen products out of the 75 analysed were found to contain traces of endotoxin, a potent inflammatory molecule found in bacteria. 61 products contained traces of glucan; a toxic substance found in the cell walls of most fungi. Exposure to these microbial toxins has been associated with a myriad of health problems including reduced lung function, asthma, and inflammation,” read a statement released by Sibongiseni Ngamile of the campaign Tobacco-Free Kids.
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That’s just the title and first few paragraphs. You can read the full article.
I found the underlying research paper here:
https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP3469
So basically they took popular cartridges and standalone ejuice in the USA and found traces of endotoxin and glucan.
My comments are as follows:
Maybe I have missed it. And haven’t had time to find the levels of these substances in cigarettes if that research has been done. In any event, I doubt the methods would be the same because these guys analyzed liquid and a cigarette is either a solid (the cigarette itself) or the smoke coming out when you inhale it. So it would probably require a different type of research.
What would be great is to see the levels of these toxins in cigarette smoke vs e-cigarette vapour.
I hope the good Dr Farsalinos sees this and writes something about it. If I am right and they didn’t compare it with cigarettes then I suspect he would say the research needs to analyze the comparison between the two.
Another interesting snippet is that the research found more of these toxins in tobacco and menthol flavours. My bad luck because those are my favourites
If anyone finds anything further on this, please share your comments below. @RichJB have you seen this? What’s your take?
https://alexnews.co.za/132198/medical-evidence-suggests-vaping-harmful-cigarette-smoking/
Here’s a part of the article:
——————————————————————————————————————————————-
Medical evidence suggests vaping could be as harmful as cigarette smoking
While the risks and merits of e-cigarettes – or vaping – continue to be fiercely contested, medical evidence is stacking up to suggest that vaping could be as harmful as cigarette smoking.
Dr David Christiani, study author and professor of environmental genetics at the Harvard School of Public Health said people should not assume e-cigarettes were safe, calling for better education and more regulation.
“There needs to be much stronger regulation of the production and purity of the compounds used in e-cigarettes,” he said.
The research conducted at the Harvard School of Public Health included the examination of 75 popular e-cigarette products, including 37 single-use cartridges and 38 e-liquids from the top 10 selling United States brands.
“Seventeen products out of the 75 analysed were found to contain traces of endotoxin, a potent inflammatory molecule found in bacteria. 61 products contained traces of glucan; a toxic substance found in the cell walls of most fungi. Exposure to these microbial toxins has been associated with a myriad of health problems including reduced lung function, asthma, and inflammation,” read a statement released by Sibongiseni Ngamile of the campaign Tobacco-Free Kids.
——————————————————————————————————————————————-
That’s just the title and first few paragraphs. You can read the full article.
I found the underlying research paper here:
https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/doi/10.1289/EHP3469
So basically they took popular cartridges and standalone ejuice in the USA and found traces of endotoxin and glucan.
My comments are as follows:
- They analyzed the liquid in the cartridges and the standalone ejuice itself. I.e. before vaporization. They didn’t analyze the vapour after the ejuice is vaporized I wonder if the results would have been different?
- Most importantly, I could not find any reference in their research to the levels of these toxins in cigarettes. In order to draw a comparison. So I find it quite strange how the Alex.co.za article has its headline referring to “vaping could be as harmful as smoking”. The research didn’t compare the two. Unless I missed it.
Maybe I have missed it. And haven’t had time to find the levels of these substances in cigarettes if that research has been done. In any event, I doubt the methods would be the same because these guys analyzed liquid and a cigarette is either a solid (the cigarette itself) or the smoke coming out when you inhale it. So it would probably require a different type of research.
What would be great is to see the levels of these toxins in cigarette smoke vs e-cigarette vapour.
I hope the good Dr Farsalinos sees this and writes something about it. If I am right and they didn’t compare it with cigarettes then I suspect he would say the research needs to analyze the comparison between the two.
Another interesting snippet is that the research found more of these toxins in tobacco and menthol flavours. My bad luck because those are my favourites
If anyone finds anything further on this, please share your comments below. @RichJB have you seen this? What’s your take?
