Latest studies suggest that high levels of cancer-causing toxins are present in some brands of E-cigarettes. German health experts have found a high amount of volatile compounds in the liquid that these cigarettes use, including acetaldehyde and formaldehyde (usually used in the heavy industry).
These results will certainly affect the opinion of many people who believe that e-cigarette is a perfectly safe alternative to cigarette smoking.
E-cigarettes – 10 Times More Carcinogens than Tobacco Cigarettes
E-cigarettes are becoming more and more popular all over the world. They usually look like regular cigarettes, but instead of using tobacco, they use heated liquid, which often contains nicotine. This liquid turns into a vapor that is inhaled.
Until now, they were generally considered to be safe, but this latest study confirms that certain brands of e-cigarettes have higher amounts of chemicals than regular cigarettes.
Acetaldehyde is one of the chemicals found in some e-cigs. This chemical is used in industrial plants to create acids and other chemicals. The levels found in some e-cigarettes are higher than the ones in tobacco.
Formaldehyde is a substance found in construction materials and embalming fluids and just like acetaldehyde, the presence of this substance in certain e-cigarette brands was much higher compared to the presence in traditional cigarettes.
According to Dr. Naoki Kunugita (National Institute of Public Health, Japan) one brand of e-cigarettes, which he didn’t want to name, contained more than ten times the level of carcinogen substances contained in one conventional cigarette.
The process of heating seems to produce and stimulate the release of even more dangerous substances. E-cigarettes in Japan can be bought freely and any law does not regulate them. However, e-cigarettes that contain nicotine are regulated by Japanese pharmaceutical laws. People can freely buy these products on the internet.
This research corresponds with the latest decision made by the World Health Organization. WHO banned the sale of these cigarettes to minors. WHO officials said that they have enough evidence that e-cigarettes can cause health problems, especially in certain categories of people like pregnant women, children, and adolescents.
Of course, manufacturers and fans of e-cigarettes still claim that they are safe for use and that they don’t come with the dangers that normal cigarettes bring. According to them, smoking tobacco has proven to be the cause of many cases of heart disease, cancer, and strokes and there is no record of e-cigarettes causing this. However, those who oppose e-cigarettes say that they are relatively new on the market, which means that it is impossible to analyze the long-term effects of smoking e-cigs. Meanwhile, the World Health Organization has suggested a ban on smoking e-cigs indoors.
It is interesting to mention that the Oxford Dictionaries has chosen the word “vape” (usually used for the act of smoking an e-cig) to be the word of the year.
* It is good to point out that although the research conducted by Japanese scientists confirmed that e-cigarettes contain 10 times more carcinogens than traditional cigarettes, this study refers only to certain e-cigarettes. Not all of them contain so many toxins. Some of them don’t contain the chemicals that the Daily Mail mentioned before.