Clear The Air News Tobacco Blog Rotating Header Image

Are e-cigs bad for you? We reveal the facts

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/features/6857765/Are-e-cigs-bad-for-you-We-reveal-the-truth.html

VAPING has become a phenomenon among smokers as the most effective way to quit smoking.

So you might not think they are bad for you so since the government last week gave the green light for e-cigs to be prescribed on the NHS to help people stop smoking.

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has awarded a licence to British American Tobacco for its e-Voke device to be prescribed to smokers – which could open the door for other vaping brands to be prescribed by GPs too.

According to NHS regulator, Public Health England e-cigs are “95% less harmful than tobacco”.

But researchers from the University of California published a study which said vaping is no safer than smoking.

They found e-cig vapour damages DNA that could lead to cancer.

There is still little research on e-cigs mainly because they are still so new.

They were only invented in 2003 by a Chinese pharmacist and not much data can be collected over this short period.

Their potential risks or benefits are still not fully understood.

We take a look at how e-cigs may be good or bad for you:

Pros

E-liquid is made up of mainly juices mixed with vegetable glycerine, nicotine and flavouring – all considered harmless.

It doesn’t contain tar – the main reason why smoking is harmful.

It’s the most effective way of quitting smoking. Research shows it is 60 per cent more effective than other methods such as nicotine gum, patches, or going cold turkey.

It’s far less harmful to the people around you than traditional cigarettes.

They do not leave a sticky, unpleasant odour and do not stain teeth or fingernails.

They are a cheaper alternative to smoking.

Cons

Most vapes still contain the addictive drug nicotine – causing cravings.

It contains other ingredients which raises questions about the impact it has on your health.

E-cigs use liquid nicotine – a highly dangerous substance even in small doses. Some testing suggests that some vaporizers release toxic metals during use.

The industry is relatively unregulated.

They have not been studied thoroughly enough to understand potential risks.

There are potentially dangerous advertisements to young people – promoting addictive habits to young people and non-smokers.

The act of vaping is habit-forming.

Verdict:

So, are e-cigs bad for you? The answer still remains a mystery.

The Sun’s GP, Dr Carol Cooper said there is a big question mark around the use of e-cigarettes.

She said: “We don’t know if it’s harmful or not as there is not enough evidence to suggest it’s bad for you.”

She suggests we must use caution around this relatively new product as we don’t know everything about it.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>