Investigating vaporizing with e-cigarettes can lead to cardiovascular damage

Study: Vaporizers affect our blood vessels
There has been talk for some time about how much chemicals in so-called e-cigarettes harm our health. Many people use e-cigarettes to quit smoking or to reduce the consumption of cigarettes. Researchers have now found that the use of e-cigarettes (vaporizers) can lead to cardiovascular damage.

Worldwide, many people have begun to use so-called e-cigarettes in recent years. By using these products, many hoped to smoke fewer cigarettes or even quit smoking altogether. However, there were often conflicting statements about the effects of e-cigarettes on our health. Researchers at Sapienza University in Rome have now found in an investigation that the vapor of e-cigarettes (vaporizers) can cause cardiovascular damage. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "Chest".

There are always ambiguities about how e-cigarettes affect our health. A new study has found that the use of e-cigarettes can lead to cardiovascular damage. (Image: juneart / fotolia.com)

Study examines impact on our blood vessels
The new study examined the effects of smoking and vaporizing (with the same nicotine content) on our blood vessels. The results of the negative effects were similar to smoking. "However, the damage induced by smoking was slightly stronger," explain the scientists.

Researchers are investigating oxidative stress and vitamin E levels
The researchers investigated a number of different markers, such as oxidative stress and vitamin E levels. In addition, the experts analyzed the ability of the blood vessels to expand, thereby transporting more blood. Forty healthy men and women formed the subjects of the new study, twenty of them smokers and twenty non-smokers, the doctors say.

Negative effects weaker than with normal cigarettes
"Even after single use, cigarettes and e-cigarettes have had adverse effects on oxidative stress markers and the ability to dilate blood vessels," explain the experts. The effects, however, seem to be weaker than with normal cigarettes. "Future studies are warranted to clarify the chronic vascular effects of e-cigarettes," says lead author Roberto Carnevale of Sapienza University.

Harmful flavors in e-cigarettes
"The signs of possible cardiovascular damage indicate a new and insufficiently considered factor in the use of e-cigarettes," explain the authors. Since e-cigarettes are still relatively new to the market, several such negative surprises could come to the users of e-cigarettes. So some of the flavorings in e-cigarettes are harmful to our breathing, the scientists add. An older study has already shown that dangerous chemicals in e-cigarettes can lead to a so-called popcorn lung.

The public must be informed about current risks
E-cigarettes seem to have substantially the same adverse effect on our vascular health, but the effects are not as strong as with regular cigarettes. "However, we do not yet know anything about the long-term effects of e-cigarettes on vascular health," said the scientists. For years, it was pointed out that supporting such products without demonstrating the safety of users could potentially pose public health risks, say the experts. The longer people use e-cigarettes, the more risks are exposed. Therefore, the public should be better informed about the currently known risks. (As)