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Tag: science
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International Study Debunks Vaping-to-Smoking Myth
An international study completed by Queen Mary University in London discovered that vaping does not lead to smoking cigarettes. There have been many myths abound about the link between vaping and smoking.
It has been a long-standing belief that vaping could act as a gateway to traditional cigarette smoking. Researchers discovered that there is no sign e-cigarettes promote or cause cigarette smoking.
“There is no sign of that, and there are some signs that they, in fact, compete against cigarettes”, states Professor Peter Hajek, Director of the Health and Lifestyle Research Unit at Queen Mary University.
“The results of this study alleviate the concern that access to e-cigarettes and other low-risk nicotine products promotes smoking.”, Hajek states, emphasizing the study’s findings.
Joey Dulay, president of the Philippine E-Cigarette Industry Association, also weighed in on the findings. “Among our peers, I have not seen any vaper turn into a smoker. It is either they continue to use e-cigarettes or quit altogether. In fact, I know a lot of former smokers who are now using e-cigarettes, which are far less harmful than combustible tobacco”.
The link between vaping and smoking: The Study
The comprehensive and in-depth study encompassed multiple countries in order to conclude its findings. Rather than encourage cigarette use, vaping seems to be causing a decline in it.
When comparing smoking rates between countries with differing e-cigarette regulations, the findings were striking.
Countries like Australia, where e-cigarette sales are banned, experienced a gradual decline in smoking. Meanwhile, in areas like the U.K. and the U.S., where e-cigarettes are more accessible, show a faster decline.
The study also examined countries where other smoking/e-cigarette alternatives are most popular, such as Sweden, where oral nicotine pouches are the delivery of choice. Japan and South Korea are also studied, where it’s common to heat tobacco rather than burn it.
While the promising study by the British university captivates attention, additional research on the link between vaping and smoking remains necessary. In the future they may be able to confirm the findings, as well as expand on the long term effects of vaping and other nicotine delivery products.
Professor Brian Ferguson, Director of the Public Health Research Programme (NIHR), shared his concluding thoughts on the researcher’s information.
“The initial findings from this study are valuable, but no firm conclusions can be drawn yet. More research is needed in this area to understand further the impact that alternative nicotine delivery products, such as e-cigarettes, might have on smoking rates,” he explained.
Many countries have opposing views and laws on e-cigarettes and smoking. It’s hard to say what will come for the future. However, it is certainly reassuring to have some light shed on current events. This news supports a favourable outlook on the future for nicotine users worldwide.
If you’re interested in using a low-risk nicotine product to quit smoking, read the owner’s testimonial here.
References
- John Lopez, Study Debunks Smoking Gateway Myth: Vaping Not Linked to Cigarette Smoking, Tech Times 2023. https://www.techtimes.com/articles/296990/20230929/study-debunks-smoking-gateway-myth-vaping-linked-cigarette.htm
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Study Confirms Vaping Far Less Toxic Than Smoking
A replication study of an experiment on vaping vs smoking has demonstrated that vaping is far less toxic than tobacco cigarettes.
The study was overseen by the Center of Excellence for the acceleration of Harm Reduction of the University of Catania or CoEHAR and carried out by 5 separate university research teams. It was part of the “Replica Project” which looks to replicate previous studies conducted in the tobacco product industry in a high quality mannar.
A large reason for this replication study was that many of the studies done in this field have been conducted by the tobacco industry and would therefore constitute a conflict of interest. Since many of the studies have not been replicated or properly reviewed, the quality of the experiment and findings can be called into question. This study was aimed at making improvements in the research methodology, to try and bring a larger degree of reliability in the data and results.
In order to reduce bias and increase the reliability in the results, CoEHAR standardized or eliminated many of the variable factors in the original study. Some of the variables that were affected by this were nicotine levels, frequency of use, the analysis of the same cells in the throat, and participant history. Many previous findings used participants who were former smokers and would therefore have skewed health data in terms of their toxicity levels. The researchers decided to replicate the study using a method that is called “neutral red uptake”. Neutral red uptake is the standardized method used by the industry and is advised by the FDA and the European Commission in order to provide a toxicity profile update.
The largest factor in causing harm with tobacco-related products are the combustible products rather than the nicotine itself. The combustible products in traditional cigarettes expose people to over 400 different toxic compounds such as free radicals, nitrates and carbonyls. Vaping nicotine rather than smoking a cigarette eliminates these compounds from the equation, leading to far less harm on the user.
Part of the problem with previous studies and data is that some of it has been misleading or made to look inconclusive. While there is little to no one who would argue that nicotine use or vaping products are risk-free or harmless, the actual debate is whether it is more or less harmful than traditional smoking. Over five million people a year die because of tobacco-related products, a number that could potentially be reduced with less harmful alternatives. When polled, 90% of current smokers would switch to a less harmful product if they believed it to be safer. To quote CoEHAR Director Professor Giovanni Li Volti “If you are obese, your doctor will tell you to go on a diet. If you have high glycemia because you are diabetic, your doctor will give you insulin. If you are addicted to heroin, they might give you methadone – they switch you to a less harmful product. But if you smoke, they just tell you to quit smoking, like it’s very easy – but it’s not.”. It was found that only about 15% of people are able to just quit smoking, leaving 85% of people to potentially develop lung cancer or cardiovascular disease.
A criticism of previous data in this field is surrounding the long-term effects of vaping. In the past, it was argued that since vaping was still fairly new, no long-term studies could be conducted and would therefore have inconclusive results. Vaping has now been around for over a decade, allowing long-term studies to be carried out and investigated. In previous studies many of the subjects were previous smokers who had smoked for over 20 years, making it hard to determine if the toxicity was caused by their years of smoking or directly from vaping. We now have data from subjects who never smoked but have been exclusively vaping. This makes the data much more reliable since it will include much fewer variables.
The original study found that vaping was 95% less toxic than traditional smoking. The new study (using 5 separate measures in order to reduce variability) found that this was in fact true.
While it is still difficult to find research or articles in this area that is free from bias, the data within the studies and methodologies used can lend a large amount of credibility. It is always important to consider the source of funding, the organization conducting the study, as well as the quality of the actual experiment when reading about this topic. We at Canada Vapes strive to improve the lives of our customers and reduce the overall harm of smoking through our product offerings or with up-to-date scientific information. To once again quote Professor Giovanni Li Volti “Don’t forget there’s a huge percentage of people who are still smoking who would switch if they were correctly informed – so we have to reach those people. If we can, we have a 90% chance of reducing their chances of getting chronic diseases.”
Hopefully, this post has been helpful in informing you about vaping vs smoking and in potentially making the transition away from cigarettes. A link to the study is included below should you wish to read further.
Full Report: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-03310-y
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Top Scientists Warn WHO Not to Stub Out E-cigarettes
Top Scientists warn World Health Organization not to classify electronic cigarettes as tobacco products.
LONDON (Reuters) – A group of 53 leading scientists has warned the World Health Organization not to classify e-cigarettes as tobacco products, arguing that doing so would jeopardize a major opportunity to slash disease and deaths caused by smoking.
The UN agency, which is currently assessing its position on the matter, has previously indicated it would favor applying similar restrictions to all nicotine-containing products.
In an open letter to WHO Director-General Margaret Chan, the scientists from Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia argued that low-risk products like e-cigarettes were “part of the solution” in the fight against smoking, not part of the problem.
“These products could be among the most significant health innovations of the 21st century – perhaps saving hundreds of millions of lives. The urge to control and suppress them as tobacco products should be resisted,” the experts wrote.
Leaked documents from a meeting last November suggest the WHO views e-cigarettes as a “threat” and wants them classified the same way as regular tobacco products under the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
That has set alarm bells ringing among a number of medical experts – and in the booming e-cigarette industry. A total of 178 countries are parties to the international convention and are obliged to implement its measures, with the United States the one notable non-signatory.
A move to classify e-cigarettes alongside regular cigarettes would push countries into taking similar tough measures to restrict demand, including raising taxes, banning advertising, introducing health warnings and curbing use in public places.
Uptake of electronic cigarettes, which use battery-powered cartridges to produce a nicotine-laced inhalable vapor, has rocketed in the last two years and analysts estimate the industry had worldwide sales of some $3 billion in 2013.
But the devices are controversial. Because they are so new there is a lack of long-term scientific evidence to support their safety and some fear they could be “gateway” products to nicotine addiction and tobacco smoking – though the scientists said they were “unaware of any credible evidence that supports this conjecture”.
BIG TOBACCO BACKS SCIENTISTS
For tobacco companies seeking to offset the decline in traditional smoking, investment in e-cigarettes was an obvious choice and all the major players now have a presence, prompting Big Tobacco to line up behind scientists on this occasion.
Kingsley Wheaton, director of corporate and regulatory affairs at British American Tobacco, said classifying e-cigarettes as tobacco products would mean smokers find it harder to access a less risky alternative.
The Geneva-based WHO said its position on e-cigarettes was still in flux ahead of a key meeting on the FCTC scheduled for October 13-18 in Moscow, where proposed regulations will be discussed.
“At this point the only thing I can say is that we are elaborating these regulations and they will soon be available to you,” Armando Peruga, programme manager for the WHO’s Tobacco Free Initiative told reporters this week.
Gerry Stimson, emeritus professor at Imperial College London and one of the organizers of the letter to Chan, told Reuters that the WHO’s position was “bizarre” and its stance on e-cigarettes was harsher than that of regulators in Europe and the United States.
“We want to make sufficient noise now before things get too set in stone,” he said.
By Ben Hirschler
(Additional reporting by Tom Miles in Geneva, editing by David Evans)