According to study, teens who vape may be exposed to harmful metals that could damage their brains and other important organs.
Sweet e-cigarette flavours, which are usually liked by children, may carry an even greater danger.
The results, according to experts, highlight the necessity of stricter laws and preventative measures to end the targeting of teenagers.
200 US youths, ages 13 to 17, who were classified as frequent, intermittent, or occasional vapers were included in the analysis.
The average daily puff count, which ranged from 27 to 7.9 to 0.9 puffs, was used to calculate usage.
The presence of lead, uranium, and cadmium was then evaluated using biomarkers in the urine.
The study discovered that e-cigarette users who vaped sometimes had lower levels of lead in their urine than those who used them frequently.
Urine from frequent vapers also contained more uranium than that of infrequent users.
The results recorded in Tobacco Control showed that the uranium levels were influenced by the tastes of vape pens.
While 49.8% of vapers used fruit-flavored vaporizers and 15.3% used sweet-flavored vaporizers, one-third of vapers preferred menthol or mint flavours.
Researchers found that uranium levels were higher in vapers of sweet flavours than in those of menthol or mint.
The study’s shortcomings were noted by the researchers, who also pointed out that food or environmental exposure could be the cause of uranium in urine.
They did, however, note that “this study reported increased urine lead and uranium levels associated with vaping frequency, despite the limitations.”
There may be an increased danger of uranium exposure via sweet flavours.
Adolescents who use e-cigarettes are more likely to be exposed to metals, which could have a negative impact on the development of their brains and organs.
These results highlight the need for additional investigation, legislation governing vaping, and focused public health initiatives to lessen the possible risks associated with e-cigarette use, especially for young people.
This is a well-conducted study underscoring the need to carefully monitor exposure in e-cigarette users and highlights the fact that e-cigarettes are not risk free, and therefore people who have never smoked, particularly adolescents, should not use them,” stated Professor Lion Shahab, co-director of the UCL Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group.
He did, however, point out that the results should be interpreted in light of the fact that exposure to uranium can occur from a variety of sources.
Furthermore, he noted, the investigation did not include a control group of kids who did not vape.
Therefore, this study only reveals relative exposure among less and more regular e-cigarette users, not an absolute increase in heavy metal exposure from e-cigarette use in this cohort.
Future research should look at if there are any significant differences between the various types of e-cigarettes, as heavy metal exposure is mostly determined by the type of device used. This will help regulators decide whether to restrict the use of devices that expose users to higher levels of heavy metals.
‘This issue could not be investigated due to the very small sample size in this study.’
In 2023, 20.5% of children in the UK tried vaping, up from 15.8% in 2022 and 13.9% in 2020, according to a report released by Action on Smoking and Health (Ash) in June.
Announced in October, the government’s Tobacco and Vapes Bill forbids the sale of tobacco to anybody born on or after January 1, 2009, with the goal of ushering in a generation free of tobacco use.
In an effort to reduce the appeal of vapes to kids and teenagers, it will also crack down on them.
There have been suggestions to limit the tastes and packaging of vapes as well as how they are exhibited in stores.
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