E-Cigarette Flavors May Harm Blood Vessels

Smoking can be extremely detrimental to your health – increasing the risk for various forms of cancer, raising your blood pressure, decreasing sexual performance as well as making you more addicted to nicotine. That being said, many individuals are looking to vaping (e-cigarette) as a healthier alternative to smoking.
 

However, recent studies suggest that this form of smoking could be just as dangerous as regular smoking.
 

The Study
 

E-cigarettes are marketed as more appealing and tasteful than cigarettes, due to their use of flavoring. Therefore, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine set out to investigate the short-term effects of flavoring chemicals used in e- cigarettes. For the study, the researchers assessed nine popular flavors:
 

menthol (mint)
 

acetylpyridine (burnt flavor)
 

vanillin (vanilla)
 

cinnamaldehyde (cinnamon)
 

eugenol (clove)
 

diacetyl (butter)
 

dimethylpyrazine (strawberry)
 

isoamyl acetate (banana) and
 

eucalyptol (spicy cooling)
 

They collected endothelial cells- which line the blood vessels and inside of the heart – from nine volunteers (nine non-smokers/non-e-cigarette users; six non-menthol and six menthol cigarette smoker) before exposing said cells to the various flavored chemicals.
 

The Results
 

The study revealed that all of the flavors were found to be dangerous to cells, influencing the levels of nitric oxide- which prevents inflammation and clotting and helps vessels widen. By reducing the levels of nitric oxide in the blood vessels, it makes them more likely to swell or clot, thus reducing their ability to expand when there is more blood – which in turn could lead to higher blood pressure. “Increased inflammation and a loss of nitric oxide are some of the first changes to occur leading up to cardiovascular disease and events like heart attacks and stroke, so they are considered early predictors of heart disease,” explained Dr. Jessica L. Fetterman, assistant professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine in Massachusetts and author of the study.
 

Although all the flavorings harmed the blood vessels, menthol, clove, vanilla, cinnamon and burnt flavorings produced the worst reactions. Furthermore, when the non-smokers’ cells were treated with a menthol or clove flavoring they showed the same damage that was seen in the smokers’ cells.
 

The Verdict
 

As Fetterman explains, the study does provide a new insight into the belief that vaping is much safer than cigarette smoking. “Our study suggests that the flavoring additives used in tobacco products like e-cigarettes, on their own or in the absence of the other combustion products or components, may cause cardiovascular injury,” she explains, “That could have serious implications, as flavored tobacco products are the most popularly used products, especially among youth.”
 

As important as these findings are in emphasizing the potentials dangers of vaping, it does have its limitations. Firstly, testing did not heat all the flavorings or include other chemicals used in e-cigarettes. It also did not heat the flavorings the way an e-cigarette would. Furthermore, it is unknown what concentrations of the flavorings make it inside the body as well as its potential effects inside the human body. Read more about the study here.