Month: September 2017

Some people may not understand the full implication of the statement “electronic cigarettes are less harmful than tobacco cigarettes”. Many, including pregnant women, assume that it is safe for them to vape. However, new research conducted on African clawed frogs has shown that a number of birth defects can result from the exposure of an embryo to e-liquid aerosol. The researchers observed that craniofacial defects, such as poorly formed facial bones, resulted from exposure to the e-liquid aerosol. These effects appeared to be more pronounced if the concentration of nicotine in the e-fluid was high. Expectant mothers would therefore be well advised to reduce vaping as much as possible so that they reduce the likelihood of the unborn child being affected by the contents of the aerosol that is inhaled. Further research is also needed to isolate the specific e-liquid ingredients that are responsible for those birth defects.

You may have been wondering how you can use an e-cigarette to help you to quit smoking tobacco cigarettes. Researchers have attempted to answer that very question and their findings suggest that your chances of quitting smoking increase with the frequency of vaping. For example, they found that vaping for five days in a month improved your chances of quitting smoking by 59%. Vaping for about twenty days in one month doubled the odds. This gives another option to people who find other cessation tools, such as nicotine patches, unsatisfactory. Improvements in electronic cigarettes, such as filtering out possible toxicants, can confer even greater benefits to those who vape instead of smoking.

While many people may know that electronic cigarettes are not as harmful as tobacco cigarettes, not many are aware of the specific hazards that they may still face if they use e-cigs. A study has shed some light on the potential harm that vapers may be exposed to as they use e-liquids that contain nicotine. The researchers monitored arterial stiffness in the study subjects who used e-cigarettes that contained nicotine and participants whose e-juice didn’t have any nicotine in it. It was discovered that those whose e-liquid had nicotine exhibited arterial stiffness while those without nicotine didn’t show any stiffness in their arteries. The stiffness was transient. However, concern was raised that prolonged vaping could trigger permanent blood vessel stiffness in the way that smoking tobacco cigarettes did. Further research is needed to verify that fear. In the meantime, it is advisable to avoid excesses, such as “dripping” that could worsen any possible adverse effects of vaping.