Dr. Tariq Jagnarine
Family Medicine, Endocrinology/ Diabetes
Both smoking and vaping have side effects and risks. The long-term health effects of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are not fully understood, but the science indicates they are not a safe alternative to smoking.
Vaping involves breathing in an aerosol that contains several chemicals, including nicotine and flavouring, through an e-cigarette or other device. Vaping is growing in popularity among teenagers. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), many people believe that vaping is safer than smoking, but this is not necessarily the case.
Mounting evidence suggests that vaping is dangerous.
Neither smoking nor vaping is beneficial to human health. Based on the available evidence, smoking appears more harmful than vaping. However, this does not mean that vaping is safe.
Secondhand smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals. Hundreds of these chemicals are toxic, and around 70 cause cancer. The AHA notes that while vaping liquids contain fewer contaminants than cigarettes, they are not entirely safe.
RISK OF VAPING
People who vape may be at risk of harm for the following reasons:
* E-cigarettes can contain a large dose of nicotine, a substance known to slow the development of brains in foetuses, children, and teens.
* The liquid that creates the vapor is dangerous to adults and children if they swallow, inhale, or get it on their skin.
* Vaping also delivers dangerous chemicals, including diacetyl, cancer-causing chemicals, heavy metals, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
* Vaping may normalise smoking again as it becomes more popular.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), by early 2020, there had been around 2,800 hospitalisations or deaths total with 68 of those confirmed deaths from vaping.
However, the CDC also acknowledges that since the removal of vitamin E acetate from vaping products, along with other harmful ingredients, the number of symptoms that people experience from vaping declined.
SMOKING
Unlike vaping, which is relatively new, there are years of research to fully back up claims that smoking is damaging to human health. According to the CDC, smoking causes:
* Damage to every organ in the body
* More than 7 million deaths a year
* 90% of all lung cancer deaths
* 80% of deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
* An increased risk of developing health conditions, such as heart disease and stroke
LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF SMOKING
Smoking has many long-term adverse effects on the body. The CDC reports that smoking:
* Reduces sperm count
* Increases the risk of pregnancy loss or congenital disabilities
* Increases the risk of cataracts
* Impairs immune system function
* Increases general inflammation
* Can cause cancer in nearly any part of the body, including the lungs, kidneys, and stomach
* Triggers asthma attacks
* Causes blockages in the veins and arteries
* Increases the risk of a stroke
LONG-TERM EFFECTS OF VAPING
Research generally accepts that while vaping can harm the lungs and other bodily systems, its impact is much less than tobacco smoking. However, a 2019 study into the long-term health effects of vaping found that people using e-cigarettes had a higher risk of respiratory disease than people who never smoked. Vaping may:
* Damage to the lungs
* Release free radicals, which promote cancer development, into the body
* Weaken the immune system
* Delay brain development in foetuses, children, and teenagers
* Some people also report sustaining burns when recharging e-cigarettes due to defective batteries leading to explosions.
QUITTING SMOKING AND VAPING
Health services recommend that vaping can be an effective tool for quitting smoking. Additionally, in 2021, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permitted the marketing of three e-cigarette products, specifically citing their potential benefit in helping people quit smoking.
However, the CDC states that there is insufficient evidence to suggest vaping can help people quit smoking.
A 2021 study found that daily e-cigarette usage among tobacco smokers can increase the likelihood of quitting smoking by eightfold. Researchers assessed data from the 2014–2019 Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study, focusing on smokers who were not planning to quit smoking at the start of the period. At the end of the survey, 28% of smokers using e-cigarettes daily had ceased smoking tobacco altogether, while 45.5% had ceased smoking tobacco daily.
However, researchers found that only daily e-cigarette use had a statistically significant effect on smoking cessation rates. Of the participants who were not using e-cigarettes, only 5.8% had quit smoking altogether by the end of the survey, while 9.9% had stopped smoking daily. Meanwhile, people who were smoking e-cigarettes non-daily had a 3.1% rate of quitting smoking and a 10.2% rate of cutting down to non-daily tobacco smoking.
A 2019 randomised control study also found that daily use of e-cigarette leads to an almost doubled rate of smoking abstinence than other nicotine-replacement products after one year.
ADDICTIVE PROPERTIES OF SMOKING AND VAPING
Nicotine is highly addictive. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) states that around half of all smokers try to quit every year, while only 6% manage to do so. A 2019 study suggests that nicotine-containing e-cigarettes may have a higher addiction potential than standard cigarettes among young adults. Researchers noted that study participants using both types of cigarettes had a higher nicotine dependence in relation to e-cigarettes.
However, nicotine alone is relatively harmless, and switching from daily tobacco smoking to daily e-cigarette use can be an important step for people to stop smoking completely.
VAPING VS. SMOKING WEED
A person can use a vaping device to inhale tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). THC is the chemical in cannabis that produces a high. According to a 2018 study examining infrequent cannabis smoking in adults, vaping THC produced stronger mind-altering effects than smoking a similar amount of weed. As a result, vaping THC may produce a faster, stronger high, but it may also mean that people experience more adverse effects.
While vape products can reduce the amount of tar and other chemicals a person inhales, they can increase a person’s nicotine dependency. Quit smoking now!!
