Vaping causes lung damage just like smoking conventional cigarettes, new research has revealed.
Scientists have found that vaping causes cellular and molecular changes that could lead to disease over time, reports Wales Online. While smokers are often told vapes and e-cigarettes are effective when quitting smoking, new experiments show prolonged inhalation of aerosols affected the pulmonary immune system, altering gene and protein levels.
Even low exposure to mango-flavoured brands from JUUL which are popular with teenagers and young adults had significant impacts. Corresponding author Dr Carolyn Baglole, of McGill University, Montreal, said: "The health consequences of vaping are not known.
Read more: Sale of vapes to under-18s set to be banned
"Our results show inhalation of the vapour generated by a popular brand of e-cigarette causes widespread changes inside the lungs. The data further highlights these products are not inert and may lead to lung damage if used long term."
The study in The FASEB Journal comes in the wake of California-based Juul Labs getting banned in the US and being ordered to pay a $440 million (€405 million) settlement for marketing its flavoured devices to teens.
Dr Baglole said: "Many individuals have previous exposure to JUUL products and, in other countries, continue to use this brand of e-cigarettes. Thus, there is a need to assess the health impact using exposure parameters that replicate human use patterns.”
E-cigarette flavours have been shown to trigger inflammation that can be similar to or even worse than that seen in traditional cigarette use. The researchers used rodents for the experiment. Just after three weeks of exposure that was meant to mimic light to moderate e-cig use in humans, they found an abundance of immune cells that are a hallmark of acute inflammation in the lungs.
Dr Baglole said the findings were in agreement with several other lab studies on the effect e-cigs have on the lungs. Future research involving exposures longer than four weeks to simulate more chronic use may shed further light on lung damage.
Read More:
Urgent appeal to find murderers fleeing prison last seen at station that runs Dublin train
Monkstown Boxing Club members locked out of facilities again without warning
Toddler left standing on buggy in back of moving car in Dublin
RTE presenter Emer O'Neill's family 'threatened' after calling out Tommy Tiernan joke
Sign up to the Dublin Live Newsletter to get all the latest Dublin news straight to your inbox.
