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Even though the e-cigarette doesn't contain nicotine, vaping has an immediate effect on how well the user's blood vessels work, according to a new study.
The study — not published in a peer-reviewed journal but presented at the Radiological Society of North America's annual meeting in Chicago — showed that using e-cigarettes with or without nicotine reduced a measure known as venous. Oxygen saturation, which means the person's lungs were taking in less oxygen.
More research is needed to confirm the findings and study the results long-term. But scientists say these results mean that regular breathing can lead to coronary artery disease down the road.
“People mistakenly believe that electronic cigarettes are a safer alternative to tobacco-based cigarettes, but this is actually not true,” said Dr. Marian Nabout, who led the study and is a medical science resident at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He did research at the University of Pennsylvania.
Although e-cigarette aerosol does not contain the same cancer-causing pollutants as tobacco smoke, people still inhale chemicals that this study shows have an effect on the body.
E-cigarettes work by heating a liquid that the user inhales into a vapor. But vapor contains more than water; Depending on the device, it may contain ingredients such as lead, nickel, formaldehyde, propylene glycol, and glycerin.
“Although there is no nicotine in e-cigarettes, there may be other components that can be harmful,” he said. I think that's why we saw these significant results even when the subjects didn't choose nicotine-based e-cigarettes.
Nabout and her colleagues looked at what happens to the organs of cigarette smokers, e-cigarette vapers and vapers who use nicotine-free products. They enrolled 31 smokers and vapers aged 21 to 49, comparing their results to 10 non-smokers and 10 non-smokers.
Each participant underwent an MRI scan before and after smoking cessation, or during each visit for non-smokers. The researchers tied each person's upper thigh to restrict blood flow; After the cuff is inflated, they assess the speed of blood flow in the femoral artery and measure the amount of oxygen in the blood that returns to the heart to oxygenate the tissues of the body.
Whenever a person puffed or smoked, the researchers found that blood flow in the femoral artery, which runs along the thigh and supplies oxygenated blood to the lower body, was significantly reduced.
Compared to non-smokers and cigarette smokers, people who used vapes with nicotine had significantly reduced vascular activity. The next group that made the biggest difference was those who used vapes without nicotine.
Good vascular function is important because a person's blood vessels dilate and contract, allowing blood to flow efficiently, delivering oxygen and nutrients to the body and removing waste. Poor blood vessel function can lead to problems such as blood clotting, high blood pressure and bleeding.
The study found that both people who smoked with and without nicotine had decreased oxygen saturation, meaning their lungs were taking in less oxygen.
Nabout said the purpose of the study is to help regulators make decisions about which of these products should remain in the United States.
E-cigarettes have been on the market without regulation for years, but to stay there, companies need approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, considering millions of product applications.
Some doctors recommend e-cigarettes to help people quit smoking, and manufacturers have made that argument to the FDA, but studies They showed that. E-cigarettes do not help people quit.
FDA approved Few cooking products, But none of them are approved as harm-reduction tools.
Dr. Albert Rizzo, chief medical officer of the American Lung Association, said the new study adds to growing evidence that people are being exposed to harmless water vapor.
“We don't know about the effects of e-cigarettes on our lungs, blood vessels, and even though they are supposed to be less toxic than regular cigarettes. Be aware of the long-term effects of these methods. Such experiments show that there are short-term effects, “said Rizzo, who was not involved in the new study.
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Rizzo said he found it interesting that both nicotine and non-nicotine vapes had an effect.
“This tells us that something in these substances can cause airway irritation that leads to inflammation, and that inflammation flows into the rest of the body just as we know particulate pollution,” he said.
Studies show that exposure to air pollution, known as particulate pollution, leads to higher rates of heart attacks and other significant health problems. If vaping seriously affects a person's vascular health, e-cigarette users may experience heart attacks, strokes or blood flow issues, Rizzo said.
“At the Lung Association, we don't want young people who are attracted to different flavors on the market to start using these,” Rizzo said.