You have probably heard about the rising popularity of vaping, and how it is considered a safer option with lower health risks than smoking. But is this actually true? In this article, I would be tackling exactly this question, putting an end to this highly debatable topic.
Smoking has been done for hundreds of years, it’s harmful effects though have been excessively popping up since the last century. Smoking and all its variants is harmful – period. This is primarily due to how smoking works. The vapor from the solid state when it is burned turns into nicotine, which is ultimately transferred into the smoker’s bloodstream. This causes constricted blood vessels, release of dopamine, heightened alertness and a boost in the heart rate. The nature of nicotine results in smokers craving more of it, which ultimately leads to addiction. Smoking also results in poor vision, dull sense of smell and taste, unhealthy teeth, persistent coughing, high cholesterol, loss of appetite, blood clotting and a weak immune system to name a few.
Now let’s talk about how vaping works. Vaping allows the aerosolization of components without creating a combustion reaction with the other compounds. This results in the user receiving no damage of smoke inhalation as the process is comparatively faster. A vapor with the least amount of combustion and smoke is created with an electrical current passing through a glass or a metal chamber. E-cigarettes primarily use liquid flavors, which vaporize, at a reduced temperature. As mentioned above, smoking inhalation is pretty harmful for a human body, as it results in the inhalation of over 20 different chemicals into the bloodstream. However, due the different functionality of vapes, only a few chemicals end up in the vapors inhaled.
To further prove that vaping is a safer option than smoking, recently a report released by the National Academy of Sciences indicate that there are no long term health effects of vaping on the human body. The report further added, stating that vaping is comparatively less addictive and that the second-hand aerosol emitted through vaping is much safer compared to the second hand smoke of cigarettes. Talking about second hand vapor, a study by the Center for Disease Control thoroughly disapproves the theory that vaping can harm people in the same room. They found out that the Occupational Exposure Level (OEL) in vape shops was well below the permissible levels, some being so low that they could not even be quantified. Consumers switching from smoking to vaping have also indicated improved respiratory functions and lower health risks overall. You can find interesting suggestions for Snacks with vaping that can help enhance vaping experience.
What this implies is that much of the opposition towards vaping from anti-tobacco groups and consumer health departments have been based on a lot of misinformation, as most of their allegations against vaping which included increased risks of cancer and that vaping is just as bad as smoking have been completely dismissed by the findings of the report. Unlike smoking, vaping is not associated with heart disease, cancer or lung diseases.
Furthermore, stakeholders due to few overheating problems and battery issues of the e-cigarettes also oppose vaping. However, what must be noted is that these issues can definitely be worked upon and standards can be implemented to make these products more safer, rather than completely shutting them down.
Another adverse image related to vaping, as talked about above is the exploding batteries. This results in many believing that e-cigarettes carry a high probability of exploding right in your mouth, so therefore they are to be avoided. The problem with this mindset is that the problem is not with vaping being harmful, rather it is the improper use of the batteries. Like all the things which use batteries like your smartphones or laptops, what is necessary is to handle them with care. Carrying loose batteries and improper charging is a recipe for disaster.
Moving on, a report published by Public Health England state that vaping is at least 95% safer than tobacco cigarettes and that it is an achievable method of quitting smoking. The American Heart Association also shared the same stance. Moreover, the Royal College of Physicians have reported that the benefits of vaping outweigh its risks. The Cochrane Library which issued it’s E-Cigarette report in 2016 also concluded that there were no short term harmful effects of vaping. Click here to know more.
Now we’ll be shifting gears to two studies which examined the effect of vaping on lungs. It was found out from one of the studies that vaping does not adversely affect the surfactant in the lungs. Comparatively, the harmful effects of cigarette smoke on surfactant was due to the tar, which is produced through burning. Since vaping involves vaporization instead of burning, the functionality of a specific part of lungs was not affected.
Another research conducted by a Professor of the University of Catania, examined different groups of young people, such as e-cig users and nonsmokers. After carefully examining them over a period of 3.5 years, the research team found no difference at all between the lungs of e-cig users and those who had never vaped. Both groups displayed similar results in blood pressure and lung tomography too.
Moving on to the public perception of vaping, nearly 37% of US survey respondents replied that vaping is safer than cigarettes, which is a remarkable improvement from only 11.5% of respondents sharing the same sentiment back in 2011. A doctor while commenting to the New Yorker state that if only 10% of the people who smoke shifted to vaping, 6.6 million lives could be saved.
Finally, what is definitely evident from all the researches and studies is that vaping is rising in popularity. Vaping now even has its own conventions, for example, Vape Fest is held in numerous cities in USA. This, along with Electronic Cigarette Convention have been the destinations where vape manufacturers and vape enthusiasts interact. Interestingly, even vape competitions are now held, known as cloud chasing competitions held under the banner of World Series of Vape and International Cloud Championships. All of this goes on to show how vape is becoming more and more popular, the primary reason for it being its lower health risks.
AUTHOR BIO
Gloria Stokes is a passionate health and lifestyle blogger. She loves to engage with readers who are seeking health, fitness and lifestyle-related information on the internet. Currently she is associated with World Wide Vape, a largest wholesale vaping supplier and distributor in USA.
About Carson Derrow
