When the vapes began to become popular in the mid -2010s, the small cartridges brought great promises. They were presented as a healthier alternative to cigarettes and a way to quit smoking.
Now the researchers are beginning to understand the dangers of the vapes themselves. In a study last month, for example, a team of scientists analyzed the mist of popular vapes and found such high levels of heavy metals that a researcher thought his machine had shown. Other studies suggest that vaping can affect the heart, lungs and brain.
Experts said they were concerned that Vaping could become harder to study after the Trump administration ended a unit focused on smoking and health. The government has also cut funds for programs that help people stop using vapes.
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Data on long -term health effects are limited because vapes are relatively new and are constantly evolving. Many people who use them are in adolescence or 20 years; It may take a while until additional effects become evident. Consumers also often use both cigarettes and vapes, which makes it difficult to isolate damage caused by vaping only. Vaping is still less common than the use of adult cigarettes in the US, of which 4.5% said they used VAPE in 2021. Nearly 8% of high school students reported having vapor last month, according to a 2024 survey.
Even so, “common sense says,” his mother would say – that inhaling a chemical overheated directly in the lungs won’t be good, “said Dr. James H. Stein, professor of cardiovascular medicine at Wisconsin University. Increasingly, research points to the reality that although vapes do not contain the same dangerous chemicals as cigarettes, they have their own damage.
Cardiovascular concerns
A VAPE TRACK IMMEDIATE STRESSES THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM. Its heart rate increases and its blood vessels contract, which can harden the arteries of the heart over time. When you vappeted “all day, repeatedly – you basically walk around with high blood pressure,” said Stein. These effects may increase the risk of developing irregular heart rate, stroke and even heart attack.
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When vapes warm the liquids at higher temperatures, they can release higher amounts of harmful chemicals that can penetrate the lungs, enter the bloodstream and reach the heart, said Irfan Rahman, a researcher at the University of Rochester who studies nicotine products. Electronic cigarette liquids can release known carcinogens such as formaldehyde and acetaldehyde when heated. These and other chemicals may damage blood vessels, cause inflammation and contribute to the risk of cardiovascular disease.
When people stop vape, they may also experience symptoms of nicotine abstinence that increase heart rate and blood pressure, Stein added.
Lung problems
Vaping causes inflammation in the airways and lungs that can become chronic, Stein said. It can also aggravate asthma and symptoms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, as well as causing persistent cough and shortness of breath.
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Although we do not know if vapes cause cancer, which can take decades to develop, we know they can expose users to substances associated with increased risk of cancer. Brett Poulin, assistant professor of environmental toxicology at the University of California, Davis, tested three popular marks of disposable vapes and found high levels of nickel and antimony, heavy lung cancer -linked metals. (Poulin’s team also found that vapes release large amounts of lead, a neurotoxin.)
Chemists used in flavored vapes, especially disposable, can also damage cell membranes, increasing the risk of lung damage and cancer, as well as heart disease, Stein said.
In rare cases, patients developed lung scars and breathing problems known as “popcorn lung” after inhaling diacetyl, a compound present in some flavored vapes. (The main brands of VAPE currently claim not to use diacetyl.) In 2019, an outbreak of severe lung lesions, including 68 deaths, was linked to vapes containing vitamin E acetate.
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Oral health
Like cigarettes, sachets, and other nicotine products, vapes limit blood flow to gums, making them more vulnerable to disease and infections. Nicotine can also damage gingival tissue, Rahman said.
Dependence
Dr. Pamela Ling, director of the University of California University Tobacco Research and Education Center, San Francisco, worked with teenagers who sleep with vapes under the pillow and look for them as soon as you wake up.
Research has shown that electronic cigarettes are addictive. Dependence can be especially problematic for adolescents whose brains are still under development. There are still some support programs to stop, and tabagism cessation medications can offer relief. But the process can be agonizing, bringing symptoms of abstinence such as depression, anxiety and irritation.
To aggravate these concerns: even more addictive vapes, which contain higher levels of nicotine, are coming to the market.
Ling said it is now easy to find 20,000 nicotine vales – an amount equivalent to 100 cigarette packs.
“New products reach the market faster than we can do science,” she said.
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