What is vaping?
Vaping products (electronic cigarettes or e-cigarettes) are devices that heat a liquid into an aerosol that is inhaled into the lungs. These devices are commonly referred to as vapes, mods, e-hookahs, sub-ohms, tank systems, and vape pens. They may all look a little different, but they work the same way.
The liquid (also called e-juice) in a vape product contains a combination of ingredients, usually including nicotine (the highly addictive substance found in tobacco products), propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, and flavorings. Many of these substances are considered safe for ingestion (eating); But when these fluids are heated, new chemicals are created that may not be safe to breathe. For example, the heating process can create chemicals such as formaldehyde and other contaminants such as nickel, tin and aluminum.
We recommend that Canadians considering using vaping products:
- Get the facts: Vaping poses significant health risks and understand the potential short- and long-term health outcomes before recommending vaping. There is increasing evidence that e-cigarettes cause serious lung diseases
- Non-smokers, pregnant women and people who have quit smoking should not vape.
- Younger people should be educated to understand their increased risk of nicotine addiction compared to the general population and strongly encouraged not to vape
- When you steam:
- monitor for symptoms that affect the health of your lungs and let your doctor know that you are vaping. If you smoke and use vaping to quit, know that there is no substantial evidence to suggest that vaping is an effective quit aid. Our advice is: do not dry clean
- talk to a healthcare provider about clinically proven options for quitting.
Taste and youth
There are more than 7,000 types of e-liquid available to entice young Canadians and children. These range from cotton candy to chocolate or mango. Young people are more attracted to taste than any other group. More than 83 percent of young e-cigarette users (ages 15 to 19) report using fruit and candy/dessert vapes. Dressing up a nicotine-based product with candy and dessert flavor names hides the product's harm and increases its appeal. There's more to flavored e-liquid than what's hidden behind the vapor.
Besides the fact that a new generation of Canadians is addicted to nicotine, there are still many unknown health risks.
Although the chemicals used in flavored e-liquids have been tested as safe for consumption, they have not been tested for inhalation. When heated, the fluids form chemicals that can cause long-term damage to the lungs. The heating process can produce chemicals such as formaldehyde and other contaminants such as nickel, tin and aluminum.
Flavors in tobacco were banned due to their clear marketing to young people, and vaping should not be treated differently. Eliminating unpleasant flavors from vaping products is critical to protecting children's lungs.
What are the health effects of vaping?
Every time we breathe anything other than medicine or fresh air into our lungs, we risk causing harm. Vaping is no different. We are gathering more and more research to fully understand the long-term health effects so we can inform Canadians. But at this point we already know that erisharm is associated with vaping.
- Nicotine addiction: Vaping products contain large amounts of nicotine, a highly addictive substance. For example, 1 Juul Pod (Juul is a brand name for a vaping product) contains the same amount of nicotine as 20 cigarettes (about a pack). This means that people can quickly develop addiction and it can even increase your chances of smoking traditional cigarettes.
- Negative lung health consequences of tobacco use include worsening existing lung diseases, lung cancer and COPD.
- Short-term symptoms: Individuals should monitor for signs of coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea. These may be signs of lung damage. If you experience these symptoms, seek medical attention.
- Lung disease: Vaping can worsen asthma and other existing lung diseases. Inhaling the harmful chemicals from vapor products can cause irreversible (non-curable) lung damage, lung disease, and in some cases, death. Some chemicals in vaping products can also cause cardiovascular disease and biological changes linked to the development of cancer.
