The Risks Of Electronic Cigarettes
As the benefits of
electronic cigarettes are widely stated (we’ll still go over them in detail in
future posts), I thought a great topic to cover would be the risks of
electronic cigarettes.
Wait – aren’t
e-cigs meant to be completely healthy with no risks? That’s why we’re switching
to them, right?
Now that’s a good
question. Indeed e-cigarettes are meant to be a significant amount more
healthier that normal cigarettes, but then again that’s not much of a
statement. After all, with more than 4000 chemicals in normal cigarettes, it
would probably be healthier to grab some toxic waste and drink it.
As for the risks,
the following is all the facts I could find, and to understand the risks we
have to quickly break down what’s inside the vapour. It’s best to know what
you’re actually smoking when you inhale the vapour of an e-cigarette, so what’s
inside is discussed in further detail here.
Wikipedia defines an electronic cigarette as “an electrical inhaler that vaporizes a propylene glycol- or glycerin- or polyethylene glycol-based liquid solution into an aerosol mist, simulating the act of tobacco smoking”
First, the dose of nicotine delivered with each puff may vary substantially. An FDA analysis recorded nicotine doses between 26.8 and 43.2 micrograms per puff. It also detected nicotine in products labeled as nicotine free.
Second, electronic cigarettes deliver an array of other chemicals, including diethylene glycol (a highly toxic substance), various nitrosamines (powerful carcinogens found in tobacco), and at least four other chemicals suspected of being harmful to humans. To be sure, the dose of these compounds is generally smaller than found in “real” cigarette smoke. But it isn’t zero.
Another link
detailing the risks is http://cloudnine.hillarymilesproductions.com/electronic-cigarettes/what-chemicals-are-in-your-e-cigarettes/
However, as a
smoker, I’m still unconcerned. I mean, if you smoke cigarettes, e-cigs should
be the least of your worries. I’m not going to list all of the chemicals in
cigarettes – a quick Google search will reveal that – but suffice to say I’d
rather take my chances with e-cigs any day.
To conclude, are
e-cigarettes completely safe?
The answer is, of
course, no they're not.
But I for one would
rather take my chances, as traditional tobacco has been proven again and again
to be incredibly harmful.
I suspect that
inhaling the vapour of an e-cig is alike to standing next to a busy road for an
hour with constant exhaust fumes going by.
That said, it’s
best not to start smoking if you already don’t, but if you do smoke and are
thinking or switching to electronic cigarettes, the likelihood is that you’re
making a wise choice.
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