Hazardous Chemicals Found in Flavored E-Cigarettes
To probe the possible health hazards of e-cigarettes, a team of atmospheric scientists at the Desert Research Institute (DRI) conducted comprehensive research on the effects of flavored e-cig vapor on human health.
The key finding of the research revealed that the aerosols (commonly called vapors) produced by flavored e-cigarettes liquids contain dangerous levels of hazardous chemicals known to cause cancer in humans.
This new research published this week in Environmental Science & Technology (ES&T), a journal of the American Chemical Society.
The Study and The Results
The team of scientists measured concentrations of 12 aldehydes in aerosols produced by three common e-cigarette devices. To determine whether the flavoring additives affected aldehyde production during vaping, five flavored e-liquids were tested in each device. In addition, two unflavored e-liquids were also tested.
The scientists found that toxic aldehydes, such as formaldehyde, are formed not by evaporation, but rather during the chemical breakdown of the flavored e-liquid during the rapid heating process (pyrolysis) that occurs inside e-cigarettes or electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS).
In addition, liquids with higher flavor content produced larger amounts of aldehydes due to pyrolysis of the flavoring compounds.
This key finding is confirmed by Andrey Khylstov, Ph.D., an associate research professor of atmospheric sciences at DRI whosaid, “One puff of any of the flavored e-liquids that we tested exposes the smoker to unacceptably dangerous levels of these aldehydes, most of which originates from thermal decomposition of the flavoring compounds.”
E-cigarette Liquids Come in 8,000 Different Flavors
The World Health Organization (WHO) says E-cigarette liquids have been popular in the market that come in nearly 8,000 different flavors. Users are attracted to the different flavors including the popular Gummy Bear, Tutti Fruitty and Bubble Gum flavors.
E-cigarettes are popular among adults and adolescents. In fact, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports that 16-percent of high school and 5.3-percent of middle school students were current users of e-cigarettes in 2015. In 2014, 12.6-percent of U.S. adults tried an e-cigarette, and about 3.7-percent of adults used e-cigarettes daily or some days.
