Electronic cigarette users are at a higher risk of developing lung diseases than those who smoke cigarettes or never smoke at all.
According to a three-year study produced by the American Journal of Preventative Medicine that monitored 30,000 patients, scientists discovered that those who use vaping products have a 29% greater chance of contracting lung conditions such as bronchitis, asthma, and emphysema.
Stanton Glantz, a University of California, San Francisco, professor and a researcher studying the effects of vaping, highlighted the dangers of the budding and mostly unregulated industry.
“This study contributes to the growing case that e-cigarettes have long-term adverse effects on health and are making the tobacco epidemic worse,” Glantz said.
EVALI, the vaping illness responsible for the deaths of more than 25 Americans, has brought the issue of teenage vaping into focus. Although President Trump has said, “people are dying with vaping,” the study is not connected to a string of recent deaths linked to THC-infused vaping cartridges.
The study suggests that vaping is not as safe as many proponents claim. Mohammad Siahpush, an investigator with the University of Nebraska, warned: “Continuous surveillance of youth behaviors and strategies and interventions to reduce youth e-cigarette use are needed. The truth is that no form of tobacco is safe.”
[Read more: Congress expected to raise minimum tobacco purchasing age to 21]
