A product marketed as a safer alternative to cigarettes has been proven to be just as harmful, according to a study by the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute.
Professor Joseph Wu, M.D., Ph.D., is the director of the Stanford Cardiovascular Institute and a professor of cardiovascular medicine and of radiology at Stanford University. He conducted a study on flavored liquids for e-cigarettes, and studied six flavors with varying levels of nicotine. His research found that the liquid harmed endothelial cells—the cells that line the interior of blood vessels, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Our paper on modeling cardiovascular risks of e-cigarettes published in JACC. Congrats to 1st author/former postdoc Won Hee Lee.https://t.co/FmB65CRTdShttps://t.co/pR5KnUwEBZhttps://t.co/FG3AtvX4l5 @American_Heart @JACCJournals @FDATobacco @ACCinTouch #stanfordcvi #TRDRP pic.twitter.com/Y4a0Xl918a
— Joseph Wu (@StanfordCVI) May 27, 2019
“Until now, we had no data about how these e-liquids affect human endothelial cells,” Wu wrote in a Stanford Medicine article published May 27. “This study clearly shows that e-cigarettes are not a safe alternative to traditional cigarettes.”
According to Wu, liquids free of nicotine also cause severe damage to the cells; but there is one factor that split the results: flavor.
Cinnamon and menthol “significantly decreased the viability of the cells,” even without nicotine. These two flavors were more harmful than fruit, sweet butterscotch, tobacco, and sweet tobacco with caramel and vanilla.
Teenagers Prefer Flavor
These results were published a week after Senator Mitch McConnell, the Senate Majority Leader, introduced legislation that would raise the federal age for purchasing tobacco products to 21—on par with alcohol.
McConnell said that the number of juvenile smokers is rising.
“From 2017 to 2018, high schools students’ use of what is classified as tobacco products shot up by nearly 40 percent … And that increase is driven almost entirely by vaping,” said McConnell as he introduced the legislation on the Senate floor.
The Department of Health and Human Services reports that more than 68 percent of high school students smoke e-cigarettes. Menthol is the favorite—precisely the flavor Wu’s study found to be more dangerous.
FDA also took action against 15+ firms for selling e-liquids that resemble kid-friendly foods, such as juice boxes, cereal and candy; and advanced an investigation into whether companies are introducing new e-cigarettes in violation of premarket authorization requirements. pic.twitter.com/VhceIuMP1d
— HHS Region 10 (@HHSRegion10) May 24, 2019
Although e-cigarettes have been on the market for less than ten years, in 2017, over 17% of NYC public high school students reported vaping at least once in the past month. E-cigarette use is now more than 3x as common among youth as smoking cigarettes. pic.twitter.com/1q3DBobBvx
— Commissioner Oxiris Barbot (@NYCHealthCommr) January 30, 2019
The study also tested nicotine levels in users of traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes after 10 minutes of smoking. The result: similar amounts of nicotine for both groups.
“It’s important for e-cigarette users to realize that these chemicals are circulating within their bodies and affecting their vascular health,” Wu said.
