Why E-cigs are worse than regular cigs
VIDEO: Watch Video About The Secret Truth Of E-cigs
At first, electronic cigarettes were a novelty — something a braggart in a bar might puff to challenge the established no-smoking policy, marveling bystanders with the fact that the smoke released from the device was merely harmless vapor.
In contrast, and after a number of analyses, we know exactly what is in electronic cigarettes. The principal ingredient is propylene glycol, which is used in dozens of applications, including medicine, asthma inhalers, cosmetics, foods, to sterilise drinking water, in air-conditioners – and to produce stage smoke!
Propylene glycol has been used since the mid-20th century, and is generally considered safe for inhalation. It’s even been used to sterilise the air in children’s wards. However, a small minority of people may be allergic to it. (If you are allergic to propylene glycol, try using vegetable glycerine instead.)
Vegetable Glycerine has also been analysed by scientists, and considered safe for inhalation.
Most e-cigarettes also contain nicotine. While not entirely healthy (its effects are similar to caffeine), nicotine is not carcinogenic, and carries a fraction of the risk of burning tobacco.
“In one brand of e-cigarette the team found more than 10 times the level of carcinogens contained in one regular cigarette,” said researcher Naoki Kunugita.
“Especially when the wire (which vaporizes the liquid) gets overheated, higher amounts of those harmful substances seemed to be produced.”
However, Kunugita added that the levels of the formaldehyde carcinogen fluctuated in the final results.
“You call them e-cigarettes, but they are products totally different from regular tobacco,” the Japanese health ministry official said.
“The government is now studying the possible risks associated with them, with view to looking at how they should be regulated.”
Earlier this year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) urged governments to ban the sale of e-cigarettes to minors because of the “serious threat” posed to them.
The UN health agency said that despite the lack of evidence on the damage caused by e-cigarettes, there was enough “to caution children and adolescents, pregnant women, and women of reproductive age” about their use, adding that they should be outlawed from indoor public spaces.
According to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): “More than a quarter of a million youth who had never smoked a cigarette used electronic cigarettes in 2013, according to a CDC study published in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research. This number reflects a three-fold increase, from about 79,000 in 2011, to more than 263,000 in 2013.”
Earlier this year, the World Health Organisation (WHO) urged governments to ban the sale of e-cigarettes to minors because of the “serious threat” posed to them.
The UN health agency said that despite the lack of evidence on the damage caused by e-cigarettes, there was enough “to caution children and adolescents, pregnant women, and women of reproductive age” about their use, adding that they should be outlawed from indoor public spaces.
According to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): “More than a quarter of a million youth who had never smoked a cigarette used electronic cigarettes in 2013, according to a CDC study published in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research. This number reflects a three-fold increase, from about 79,000 in 2011, to more than 263,000 in 2013.”
