A Study, Dangers Of Vaping

the short story ......

Background and aims

Aldehydes are emitted by electronic cigarettes due to thermal decomposition of liquid components. Although elevated levels have been reported with new-generation high-power devices, it is unclear whether they are relevant to true exposure of users (vapers) because overheating produces an unpleasant taste, called a dry puff, which vapers learn to avoid. The aim was to evaluate aldehyde emissions at different power levels associated with normal and dry puff conditions.

Design
Two customizable atomizers were prepared so that one (A1) had a double wick, resulting in high liquid supply and lower chance of overheating at high power levels, while the other (A2) was a conventional setup (single wick). Experienced vapers took 4-s puffs at 6.5 watts (W), 7.5 W, 9 W and 10 W power levels with both atomizers and were asked to report whether dry puffs were generated. The atomizers were then attached to a smoking machine and aerosol was trapped.

Setting
Clinic office and analytical chemistry laboratory in Greece.

Participants
Seven experienced vapers.

Measurements
Aldehyde levels were measured in the aerosol.

Findings
All vapers identified dry puff conditions at 9 W and 10 W with A2. A1 did not lead to dry puffs at any power level. Minimal amounts of aldehydes per 10 puffs were found at all power levels with A1 (up to 11.3 µg for formaldehyde, 4.5 µg for acetaldehyde and 1.0 µg for acrolein) and at 6.5 W and 7.5 W with A2 (up to 3.7 µg for formaldehyde, 0.8 µg for acetaldehyde and 1.3 µg for acrolein). The levels were increased by 30 to 250 times in dry puff conditions (up to 344.6 µg for formaldehyde, 206.3 µg for acetaldehyde and 210.4 µg for acrolein, P < 0.001), while acetone was detected only in dry puff conditions (up to 22.5 µg).

Conclusions
Electronic cigarettes produce high levels of aldehyde only in dry puff conditions, in which the liquid overheats, causing a strong unpleasant taste that e-cigarette users detect and avoid. Under normal vaping conditions aldehyde emissions are minimal, even in new-generation high-power e-cigarettes.

Conclusion

Aldehyde emissions in EC aerosol are associated directly with dry puff conditions. In normal vaping conditions, the levels of aldehydes emissions are minimal and by far lower than the levels in tobacco cigarette smoke, despite the use of high power levels. In dry puff conditions, aldehyde emissions are significantly elevated to very high levels, but vapers are not expected to be exposed to such levels during normal EC use, even when they use new-generation high-power devices.


the long story a good read
E-cigarettes generate high levels of aldehydes only in ‘dry puff’ conditions - Farsalinos - 2015 - Addiction - Wiley Online Library  

E-cigarette cancer warning as new study finds mint and menthol flavour risk

The study of menthol and peppermint vapes revealed high concentrations of a carcinogenic additive called pulegone that US watchdogs recently banned in food.

The pulegone additive, a constituent of oil extracts from mint plants, is believed to cause liver cancer if absorbed in high enough quantities.​

Mint, menthol e-cigarette liquids high in cancer-causing compound: study - Reuters

The findings, published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine​

Vape Pods Taste Minty Thanks to Extremely High Levels of a Chemical Banned in Food

But despite all the evidence that pulegone is carcinogenic and causes liver toxicity, researchers found the chemical is present in mint and menthol-flavored e-cig liquid at levels far above a safe threshold.​

This study is the latest in a growing pile of proof to how little-regulated e-cigs and vapes are. To illustrate that, researchers compared pulegone levels in mint and menthol e-cig liquid to levels in menthol cigarettes. At all levels of daily consumption, pulegone exposure from vape pods are significantly higher than exposure from cigarettes, with rates ranging from 44 to 1,608 times higher.​

So much for Juul's best seller - menthol.  

[URL='http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-e-cigarettes-contain-10-times-amount-of-carcinogens-japan-2014-11']E-cigarettes Contain Ten Times The Carcinogens - Business Insider[/URL]

Any thoughts?  

Ok I'm hoping I don't get heat for these questions/statements but educating ones self especially with something that is still very new is important to me.

1. Read some articles on how there is second hand vape similar to cigarettes (99% better mind you) what are your thoughts? Vaping may not be as safe as smokers think, research suggests | Society | The Guardian

2. Formaldehyde found in builds running at high watts/voltage? But 0% at low/normal builds, what i can't seem to find is whats considered to high for a Mechanical Mod or even for a V/W, V/V Setup? My normal build for a mech mod is twisted single coil 24 gauge 6-7 wraps, usually gets about 0.28 ohms and single coil 8 wraps of 24 gauge puts out 0.73 ohms on my flavor builds.
Before You Vape: High levels of Formaldehyde Hidden in E-Cigs - NBC News  

"
Vaping is supposed to be a form of harm reduction, that is, allow nicotine addicts to have access to the drug without the harmful tars and chemicals in cigarettes that cause cancer, heart disease, and other maladies.

Last year, the Journal of the American Heart Association published a study finding that vaping posed as great a heart risk as smoking itself. That study fueled public policies at all levels of government to stifle the industry. A lot of small business people had their livelihoods destroyed or damaged as a result.

Now, the study has been retracted — which is a very big deal in science — because the editors are “concerned that the study conclusion is unreliable” due to what appears to have been an uncompleted peer review process..........."

Major Anti-Vaping Scientific Study Retracted | National Review


Score one for our side. 'They will not stop until tobacco becomes regulated like a hard drug - 'We will not stop until our rights, especially our right to use a less harmful form of tobacco, such as vaping,
is assured.  

Hi,

I just read reports that pulegone, which is found in peppermint oil and is a carcinogen, are found in "minty" e-cigs.
Vape Pods Taste Minty Thanks to Extremely High Levels of a Chemical Banned in Food

High levels of cancer-causing chemical found in mint and menthol e-cigarettes: Study

This causes concern as I've been mixing my own juice using menthol crystals and PG, VG. I wonder if pulegone is found in menthol crystals too. As I understand, menthol crystal is derived from peppermint, just like pulegone, but that doesn't mean menthol has pulegone does it? It seems menthol has its own molecular structure.

Thanks  

First published study showing that Juul can deliver a higher and faster boost in blood nicotine than most other e-cigarettes and similar to a cigarette. Nicotine Absorption Profile Among Pod-Based Electronic Nicotine Delivery System Users Any thoughts?  

Concerns about dripping

Newer-generation e-cigs allow users to choose — and change — what flavorings they heat up in their devices. Most vapers choose a liquid with nicotine (that addictive, stimulant found in tobacco). To get the biggest nicotine hit from each puff, some vapers take the outside cover off of their e-cigarette and use an eyedropper to “drip” the liquid directly onto the device’s coil.

This is an atomizer used for dripping. A couple drops of e-liquids are dripped directly onto the hot coils to create a vapor cloud.



E-liquids reach higher temperatures when dripped directly onto the coil. This also creates a bigger vapor cloud and provides a bigger throat hit. A new study now raises special concerns for teens who drip.

Allowing the liquid to get superhot can transform harmless chemicals in the e-liquid into toxic ones. (Note: At least one recent study showed that the hotter the vaped liquid became, the more likely it was to undergo such a toxic transformation.) And dripping makes this super-heating likely. Some people even use attachments, called atomizers, to do this more effectively.

Vaping hobbyists that do smoke tricks may have popularized dripping, says Suchitra Krishnan-Sarin. A psychiatrist at Yale University in New Haven, Conn., she’s been studying vaping behaviors in teens. Many now drip, she and her colleagues report.

This team surveyed 1,080 Connecticut high schoolers who said they vaped. One in every four teen vapers said he or she had tried dripping.

This is the first time any study has reported on the popularity of dripping in teens. (Researchers don’t yet know how common dripping is among adults.) The new statistics appear in the February Pediatrics.

Most teens who dripped said they had hoped it would let them make thicker vapor clouds or give the vapor a stronger taste. At present, little is known about the health risks of this type of vaping, Krishnan-Sarin notes.

And that worries her. “There’s great concern,” she says, “that kids are being exposed to higher levels of known carcinogens this way.” Researchers don’t yet know if this is true. And that’s because no one has yet studied whether more of these compounds get into the body when people drip instead of vaping normally.

For now, Krishnan-Sarin says a bigger vapor cloud or more flavorful hit probably isn’t worth the risk. “You don’t know what you’re exposing yourself to,” she points out, and no one should assume that the e-liquids and the vapors they generate are harmless  

Any thoughts on this study?

Vaping may disrupt immune cells in the lungs, mouse study finds

If I understood correctly, despite mentioning the THC issue, they are also trying to imply that regular, legal vaping may be the culprit for many of the lung illnesses that have came up recently.  

Perhaps folks who have posted documentation in a variety of spots would want to post it here as well. We could use a go-to thread when we're looking for solid evidence on a topic ("Just the facts, ma'am.).

Let's post only heavy-duty stuff, genuine documentation, not in-my-opinion pieces and the like. I'll start with these:

A document from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("These e-cigarettes are not considered smoking devices, and their heating element does not pose the same dangers of ignition as regular cigarettes.") A 55-page study from the National Institutes of Health's National Center for Biotechnology Information ("The potential of significant adverse effects on bystanders is minimal.") A 13-page study from FEMA's U.S. Fire Administration ("More than 2.5 million Americans are using electronic cigarettes [e-cigs or e-cigarettes], and this number is growing rapidly. Fires or explosions caused by e-cigarettes are rare. Twenty-five separate incidents of explosion and fire involving an e-cigarette were reported in the United States media between 2009 and August 2014."). ​