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Smoking is not good for you. But electronic cigarettes, with their sleek USB case and mango cartridges, promised a smoother, safer future. No tar, no combustion, no problem. But this picture becomes more complicated. Last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) announced the opening of a survey on the effects of electronic smoking on health after nearly 100 adolescents in 14 states had reported lung diseases related to the inhalation of vapors. The cases, which were mainly reported in adolescents and young adults, were so severe that some patients were hospitalized and ventilated.
So, a study on today in the newspaper Radiology do not come a moment too soon. Researchers have shown that inhaling vapors of electronic cigarettes – just steam, no nicotine, and no scents – has an immediate negative impact on the vascular system.
Electronic cigarettes appeared on the market in 2007 and in the years that followed, teenage vaping exploded. The CDC estimates that one in five high school students uses the electronic cigarette. Between 2017 and 2018, the consumption of e-cigarettes among teens has increased by more than 75%, prompting the US Surgeon General to speak of an "epidemic".
Yet little is known about the misdeeds of e-cigarettes. Of course, nicotine is harmful even when it is not smoked: vaporizing nicotine is still highly addictive, can harm the development of the brain of adolescents and even cause convulsions. But electronic cigarettes contain more than just nicotine, and the essential of the research up here has largely neglected the way these other ingredients affect users.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine have simplified the issue. They eliminated the nicotine and the aromas and were content to watch how the inhalation of this basic vapor into the blood vessels of a person.
With the help of an MRI, the researchers examined the veins and arteries of 31 people before and after taking a few puffs of electronic cigarette. Their electronic cigarettes contained only vape juice, a mixture of mostly water and glycerol or propylene glycol, which holds everything dissolved inside the cartridge. The test subjects, all ages 18 to 35, were non-smokers and vapers for the first time. But after taking 16 puffs of three seconds, participants had poorer blood circulation, stiffer arteries and less oxygen in their blood. "The results of our study refute the idea that inhaling electronic cigarettes is harmless," says Felix Wehrli, the study's lead investigator.
Although glycerol and propylene glycol are considered safe, they may not be inhaled safely. Wehrli's study shows that when chemicals are heated and inhaled, they eventually pass through the lungs and into the arteries and veins that make up our vascular system. Once on site, they irritate the epithelium, a thin layer of cells that lines the blood vessels and helps regulate blood flow, blood clotting and immune responses. The inflamed epithelium then changes the way the arteries dilate and contract. "We were expecting an effect, but we never thought that this effect was as important as what we had found," says Wehrli. "It's not just a small change that we detect, it's a major effect."
Healthy blood vessels expand and contract naturally to regulate the amount of blood flowing through the body. When Wehrli and his colleagues examined three arteries of the leg, heart, and brain, they found that vaping each contracted more than 30%. This meant that the blood did not flow as fast as before the steam inhalation. The researchers also found that vaping reduced the amount of oxygen in the blood by 20% and made the walls of the blood vessels stiffer and stiffer, a symptom often associated with cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and stroke. Other studies have shown similar results in animals, but this is the first finding of this type in humans. "It's really amazing," says Sven Jordt, who studies e-cigarettes at Duke University but did not participate in the study.
A defective epithelium can have major effects on your health. Over time, inflammation can cause plaque buildup in the blood vessels, a condition called atherosclerosis that can lead to a heart attack or stroke. The effects observed in this study, however, were short-lived. Participants regained their normal vascular function within a few hours. A puff will not cause serious chronic illness, but pull a vape several times per hour – or use a full cartridge in one day – and the results may be different.
Like many laboratory tests, the parameters of this study did not correspond exactly to the real world. In a statement sent by email, Juul, the San Francisco-based electronic cigarette company that controls more than 70 percent of the US market, points out that the study "advocated a forced-blowing regime whose volume was unrealistic and whose the volume was very limited. "
It is also true that these vascular responses are not unique to smoking. Many behaviors and environmental factors can cause the constriction of blood vessels without causing damage. "A host of other activities, including exercise and caffeine consumption, have a significant impact on vascular activity, but these short-term changes are not necessarily of value." long-term prognosis, "says Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping. Association, an organization that promotes vaping products.
But if the long-term impact of this research is unknown, this adds to a growing body of evidence about the misdeeds of electronic cigarettes. Some studies have shown that vape juice is chemically unstable and that although cartridges remain on the shelf, reactions in the liquid can create toxic chemicals. Another study shows that e-cigarettes cause wheezing and yet another found that vaping was associated with emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
"Inhaling chemicals into your lungs is dangerous," says Erika Sward, spokesperson for the American Lung Association, who recommends not using electronic cigarettes. For those looking to quit smoking, ALA recommends using FDA-approved medications, patches, gums, or counseling programs, rather than turning to e-cigarettes. "E-cigarettes are guilty until proven guilty and we are really at the guilt stage," says Sward.
Scientific evidence accumulates, but it does not follow the growth of the electronic cigarette market. On Monday, a regulatory filing showed that Juul had collected an additional $ 325 million to expand its operations around the world.
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