Second-hand vapor is the vapor released into the air produced by a vaper. This vapor is technically aerosol. Similar to second-hand smoke, it lingers in the air for a long time exposing non-vaping people too. The bystanders do not inhale second-hand smoke simply because second-hand electronic cigarettes vapor isn’t practically smoke.
Is secondhand vaping something to be concerned about?
“Vaping and secondhand vaping is just as dangerous,” clarifies Nader Nakhleh, D.O., a board certified pediatric pulmonologist. “Now it is our mission as experts to change the conversation around vaping from being a ‘better’ alternative to smoking to actually being equally as detrimental.”
Is second hand vape bad for your health?
There isn’t a lot of research done on the health harms of secondhand vaping. Early studies suggest that the risks posed by secondhand vaping are substantially lower than secondhand smoking, but that's a low bar considering how hard cigarette smoke is on the body.
Can you get second hand smoke from vape?
Propylene glycol is one of the primary chemicals found in vape aerosol. There isn’t nearly as much scientific evidence condemning secondhand vape smoke as there is secondhand cigarette smoke, but there is enough to support the notion of ducking and dodging a nearby ESD smoker the same way you would avoid someone blowing cigarette smoke.
Does second hand smoking harm you?
Secondhand smoke can also be harmful in other ways. For instance, breathing secondhand smoke affects the heart and blood vessels, which increases the risk of having a heart attack. Exposure to secondhand smoke increases the risk of developing and dying from heart disease. It also increases the risk of having (and dying from) a stroke.
What is the chemical in second hand vape aerosol?
What percentage of people with asthma report vaping?
What is third hand smoke?
Why are vapes dangerous for children?
How to quit smoking cigarettes?
Is vape aerosol harmful?
Does vaping smell like candy?
See 4 more
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Mayo Clinic Minute: Secondhand electronic cigarette smoke
Secondhand cigarette smoke is a combination of smoke from the burning end of a cigarette and the smoke breathed out by smokers. Exposure to secondhand smoke has been linked to cardiovascular disease, lung cancer and an increased risk of sudden infant death syndrome. But what about exposure to secondhand electronic cigarette smoke? Watch: The Mayo Clinic […]
'Secondhand Vaping' Risks Don't Justify Public E-cigarette Restrictions
Evidence confirming the relative safety of vaping continues to build. Multiple studies have now clearly shown that e-cigarette use is far safer than traditional smoking and effective in helping many people give up combustible cigarettes. But what about the secondhand impacts of vaping? A study just published in BMJ Thorax claims that “Secondhand nicotine vape exposure” may be associated ...
Can I be Affected by Secondhand Vape Smoke? - A Healthier Michigan
Vape pens and e-cigarettes have become a common sight in the last five to 10 years. We see them used at stores, bars and big events and assume they must be healthier than actual cigarettes.
What Chemicals are in Second Hand Vapor?
The study concluded that when a person vapes, the vapor they exhale does, in fact, contain chemicals and particles such as glycerin, nicotine, and propylene glycol. All three of which are the main ingredients in e-liquid.
Does second hand vapor contain metals?
Another more recent study concluded that apart from the above mentioned particles, second hand vapor also contains minuscule traces of heavy metals and alde hydes, which can pose risks to bystanders’ health.
Is second hand vapor bad for you?
Though secondhand vapor and secondhand cigarette smoke are different, there are still health risks, and secondhand vapor can potentially be dangerous. As of now, we don’t exactly know all the risks due to the lack of research. But it is highly suggested to consider secondhand vapor as you would secondhand cigarette smoke. And be just as considerate to other people as you would if you were smoking around them.
Is it safe to smoke second hand vapor?
The answer to this is not a simple yes or no. Although secondhand smoke is more well researched , secondhand vapor does contain potentially harmful substances. It is important to consider a few things when considering how dangerous vaping smoke can be. For example, it is very important to be considerate of the more vulnerable groups, such as children and teenagers, since they are still developing and can be at higher risk of health problems from long-term exposure to these chemicals.
Is it safe to vape in enclosed areas?
It is also quite important to consider where you vape. If the place is well ventilated, the aerosoles from the vaporizer are ventilated away and don’t stay in the area. Therefore not exposing bystanders to such a high level of the fumes. However, if the area is very enclosed, the second hand vapor stays in one place, and begins to build up. This poses a much higher risk of inhalation, and therefore should be avoided if possible. Especially when vaping around children and teenagers.
How does second hand smoking affect the world?
Secondhand smoking kills tens of thousands of people every year in the United States alone. It can cause sudden infant death syndrome and lung issues in children. In adults, it can lead to serious health conditions later in life, such as stroke, heart disease, and lung cancer—even in people who never smoked themselves. 1
How does an e-cigarette work?
E-cigarette devices use metal coils to heat the vaping fluid, and over time, small amounts of metals can sometimes get into the aerosol after repeated use at high temperatures. 6 . While the person vaping will breathe in the full brunt of these toxins, some will be exhaled into the air.
Is second hand vaping bad for you?
Secondhand Vaping as a Gateway. In addition to the still uncertain health risks associated with breathing in e-cigarette aerosol, being around people who vape could have other consequences—particularly for adolescents who are more likely to be influenced by social norms and visual cues.
Does vaping hurt your lungs?
Short-term studies didn’t find evidence that secondhand vaping hurts lung function , with one notable exception. Researchers found that people who were around vaping aerosol showed increases in the serum cotinine, which is a marker that someone was exposed to nicotine (an ingredient often found in e-cigarettes). 7 Given the long list of health risks posed by nicotine, more research needs to be done on how this exposure could affect someone’s lungs long-term like it can with secondhand smoke.
Can vaping affect non-vapers?
It’s still not clear how the toxins found in secondhand vaping can affect the health of non-vapers, especially long-term. The limited research available so far has largely focused on immediate health effects. That said, there are some concerns about how repeatedly inhaling e-cigarette aerosol over an extended period of time could affect bystanders’ long-term lung function and risk of allergic reactions.
Can vaping cause lung injury?
UPDATE: Recent illnesses have been associated with use of e-cigarettes (vaping). Since the specific causes of these lung injury cases are not yet known, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends refraining from all vaping products.
Does vaping affect air quality?
One study, for example, found that under most conditions, someone vaping at home all day didn’t change the air quality a terrible amount unless they vaped intensely at a high voltage. At that point, levels of formaldehyde exceeded limits set by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA), though other compounds didn’t come close. 7
What is secondhand vaping?
Secondhand vaping is exactly what it sounds like: if you're near a person breathing out vapor from an e-cigarette, you generally breathe in the same air that they're exhaling and can inhale the same vapor.
What to do if someone uses e-cigarettes?
If someone close to you, like a parent, caretaker or coworker, uses e-cigarettes, you can kindly ask them to stop while you're around. Frame it as a way to protect both your health and theirs, and hopefully they'll respect your wishes.
Is vaping a health risk?
E-cigarettes can emit a huge cloud of vapor that can affect an entire crowd of people. Getty Images. When vaping first gained popularity, it was marketed as a healthier alternative to traditional cigarettes. However, a recent surge in illnesses, hospitalizations -- and even deaths -- has shown that there may be much scarier health risks associated ...
Does vaping harm the lungs?
The vapor can also harm bystanders ' lungs and contribute to lasting damage ...
Does vapor contain nicotine?
Another study from 2018 found that the vapor not only contains nicotine, but also heavy metals, aldehyde and glycerin, even though vaporizer companies try to paint these products as healthier in every way. These chemicals contribute to the health risk posed by secondhand vaping.
Is vaping a teenager phenomenon?
E-cigarettes are becoming more and more of a teenage phenomenon. With more teens than ever now vaping, it seems like the younger folks who are more at risk. A third of high-schoolers and middle-schoolers reported that they were exposed to vaping aerosol in 2018.
Can you vape with your friends?
If you really want to avoid the negative health effects of secondhand vaping, you may just want to not hang out with your friends while they're using e-cigarettes. Or, if you're reading this and you are an e-cigarette user who's not ready to give it up yet, at least don't vape around other people (especially kids).
What about the Nicotine in Vapor?
Nicotine is an addictive substance, and it’s why people find it so hard to quit smoking, but is it actually harmful to smokers and those who may accidentally inhale their smoke? While ideally it would be great not to want nicotine — the reason many people vape is for the flavor alone, and many choose to vape without nicotine in their e-liquid — it turns out that it’s not all that hazardous to human health, at least compared to everything that’s found in tobacco.
Is vaping dangerous to others?
But if you are a vaper, just be mindful of others when you’re vaping out in public. Despite posing almost no risk to others, people still might not like vapor being blown in their face.
Is vaping good for you?
The top medical authority in England, Public Health England, issued a revised advisory on vaping earlier this year and urged people to start using e-cigarettes as one of the best ways to quit smoking. It said that “vaping poses only a small fraction of the risks of smoking and switching completely from smoking to vaping conveys substantial health benefits,” and that “e-cigarettes could be contributing to at least 20,000 successful new quits per year and possibly many more.”
Is vaping better than smoking?
As Public Health England noted, “there is much public misunderstanding about nicotine (less than 10% of adults understand that most of the harms to health from smoking are not caused by nicotine).” So based on all the evidence we now have about vaping and smoking, the former is certainly much better for your health than the latter, and that includes what’s given off in secondhand smoke and vapor.
What is secondhand vapor?
Secondhand vapor (which is technically an aerosol) is the vapor exhaled into the atmosphere by an e-cig user. Like secondhand smoke, it lingers in the air long enough that anyone in the same room (assuming the room is small enough) is likely to inhale some of the exhaled aerosol. As the name indicates, the bystanders are not inhaling secondhand (or passive) smoke—because secondhand e-cigarette vapor simply isn’t smoke.
Who studied the dangers of second hand vaping?
Igor Burstyn’s study of the possible dangers of secondhand vaping attempted to “estimate potential exposures from aerosols produced by electronic cigarettes and compare those potential exposures to occupational exposure standards.” His conclusion: “Exposures of bystanders are likely to be orders of magnitude less, and thus pose no apparent concern.”
What is the difference between e-cigarettes and vapor?
E-cigs heat e-liquid with a small metal coil housed in an atomizer , and the heat turns the e-juice into the vapor you see. E-cigarette vapor doesn’t have any carbon monoxide or tar, and the particles in the aerosol are liquid rather than solid. Dangerous chemicals and metals are found in vapor, but only in tiny quantities.
Is third hand nicotine inhaled or exhaled?
What isn’t inhaled falls to the ground quite rapidly. Those concerned with “thirdhand nicotine”—the unabsorbed nicotine that lands on floors and furniture—might make a case for not vaping around kids or pets who might lick the surfaces. But there’s not much nicotine left in the settled residue. According to a 2016 University of California-San Francisco study, 93.8 percent of the inhaled nicotine is retained by the user, and is not part of the exhaled vapor.
Does vaping contain VG?
Aside from propylene glycol and glycerin (PG and VG) —the two glycols that make up the base of virtually all e-liquids—what vapers exhale into the air doesn’t contain high levels of anything. According to Drexel University toxicologist Igor Burstyn, while the contents of e-cig vapor inhaled by users “justifies surveillance,” there is so little contamination in exhaled vapor that there is unlikely to be any risk for bystanders.
Can you vape inside a house?
If you encounter people vaping inside a house, all of the secondhand vapor you see comes out of the mouths of the vapers in the room. There is no side stream “vape smoke” like there is side stream tobacco smoke from cigarettes—no constant emission of vapor pouring from the device when it’s not being used.
Is nicotine in vapor residue?
But there’s not much nicotine left in the settled residue. According to a 2016 University of California-San Francisco study, 93.8 percent of the inhaled nicotine is retained by the user, and is not part of the exhaled vapor.
What is the purpose of vaping an ecig?
The purpose is to replicate smoke and its effect on the throat, without causing harm.
How long does it take for smoke to dissipate?
The smoke dissipates by half in ~30 minutes in a room. The vapor dissipates by half in ~10 seconds. It’s why you can smell smoke from other rooms and even outside, rarely vapor.
What is visible vapour?
The visible vapour is a mist composed of liquid particulates that disperse faster than smoke. The vapour comprises water, glycerol, flavouring, and nicotine. Any second-hand nicotine inhaled from vapour would be minutely small, and less than that obtained by eating a portion of a vegetable such as aubergine.
What is OEL in vaping?
An “OEL” is the Occupational Exposure Level. That’s right, that foggy, vape shop was as safe as any American work environment.
What is the product of smoking a cigarette?
Smoking a cigarette produces a solids-based aerosol we call smoke. It is a combustion-based process that sets a solid, vegetable material on fire. The products of pyrolysis (combustion) include solid particulates and exhaust gases such as carbon monoxide, CO.
Is vaping safe for people?
Vaping is entirely safe for bystanders. There is NO danger to anyone to breathe the miniscule amounts of chemicals in the air near vapers. There is no need wh
Does vaping contain nicotine?
Yes but because most of the nicotine (if there is any nicotine in the e-liquid) is absorbed by the vaper, the amount would be minimal — probably equivalent to the amount you’d get by eating some broccoli and tomatoes. Both of these contain nicotine.
What is the chemical in second hand vape aerosol?
Secondhand vape aerosol contains flavorings, such as diacetyl, a chemical that may impair the function of cilia in the airway.
What percentage of people with asthma report vaping?
Based on the results of the 2018 Annual Asthma Survey by the Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Partnership, 14 percent of people with asthma reported that vaping or exposure to secondhand vape triggered their asthma symptoms.
What is third hand smoke?
Thirdhand exposure is a thing, too. When someone who’s vaping exhales, the components of the aerosol doesn’t just go into the air — they also settle on surfaces. Trusted Source. . This is what’s referred to as thirdhand smoke (or aerosol). You can be exposed to these components when you touch a contaminated surface.
Why are vapes dangerous for children?
Infants and children. Vape aerosols pose an especially high risk for infants and children because of their lower body weight and developing respiratory systems. , being exposed to even low concentrations of the components of vape aerosol can affect brain and lung development.
How to quit smoking cigarettes?
Try to taper your nicotine dose gradually if you’re using vaping to help you quit traditional cigarettes. Cutting out nicotine altogether will minimize the risk of nicotine-related side effects for you and others.
Is vape aerosol harmful?
Its long-term effects are still being investigated. What we do know so far is that vape aerosol contains a number of harmful substances, including: There’s evidence that nonsmokers exposed to secondhand vape aerosol absorb similar levels of nicotine as people exposed to secondhand cigarette smoke.
Does vaping smell like candy?
This brief exposure probably isn’t a huge deal, but secondhand vape aerosol (the “smoke” from vaping) is definitely a thing, even if it smells like candy.
