Scientists have warned that mint vapes cause more damage to lungs than any other flavour.
There are more toxic microparticles in mint flavour vapes compared to menthol-free liquids. A new study has found mint vapers took shallower breaths and had poorer lung function than other smokers, reports Wales Online.
This was regardless of how long they smoked cigarettes, whether they used cannabis-laced vaping products, or what their age, gender or race was. The US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) has put pressure on cigarette manufacturers to ban menthol in regular tobacco products including cigarettes and cigars while scientists have warned minty flavour vapes could be as dangerous as cannabinoid vapes - which have been strongly linked to lung injury.
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The vape-market is has sky-rocketed in popularity, with mint flavours especially in demand among the 2.5 million young people who reported smoking e-cigarettes in 2022. Senior author Professor Kambez Benam of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said: “Many people, especially youth, erroneously assume that vaping is safe, but even nicotine-free vaping mixtures contain many compounds that can potentially damage the lungs.
“Just because something is safe to consume as food does not mean that it’s safe to inhale. The main message that we want to put out there is for people, especially young adults, who haven’t smoked before.
“Switching to e-cigarettes may be a better, safer alternative for someone who is trying to quit smoking regular tobacco products. But it’s important to have full knowledge of e-cigarettes’ risks and benefits before trying them.”
Previously, Professor Benam’s team discovered vitamin E acetate, a common additive in cannabinoid e-cigarette liquids, generates more toxic small particles.
These particles can travel deep inside the lung and wedge themselves in the narrowest airways and lining of the walls of the trachea and bronchus.
This study in the journal Respiratory Research suggests menthol additives could be just as dangerous as vitamin E acetate - strongly linked with lung injury in e-cigarette and vape users.
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