Vaping FAQs

how does vaping expose you to toxic metals

by Prof. Rowan Blanda MD Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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Doctors have discovered yet another way that vaping — and vaping THC, in particular — can damage the lungs: when the metal coils of electronic cigarettes heat up to turn e-liquids into aerosols, toxic metals can leach into the liquid, leading to a rare condition usually only seen in industrial metal workers.

Doctors have discovered yet another way that vaping — and vaping THC, in particular — can damage the lungs: when the metal coils of electronic cigarettes heat up to turn e-liquids into aerosols, toxic metals can leach into the liquid, leading to a rare condition usually only seen in industrial metal workers.Dec 4, 2019

Full Answer

Can vaping lead to heavy metal poisoning?

However, research has demonstrated that vaping can lead to many of the same illnesses as smoking, including heavy metal poisoning. Vaping and Heavy Metal Poisoning Though many heavy metals like zinc and iron are necessary for the body to function properly, an overaccumulation of such metals can cause poisoning and serious damage.

Do e-cigarettes leak toxic metals?

“Toxic metals linked with brain damage are ‘leaking from e-cigarettes into vapour’, experts have found,” said The Mirror. “Oh good, e-cigarette vapor contains toxic metals, too,” shouted the sarcastic Mashable banner.

Is vaping bad for You?

But recent studies have shown that toxicity, more than anything else, is behind it all. In 2017, Johns Hopkins University found that toxic, cancer causing heavy metals were in all of the leading brands of vaping liquid they tested. The study calls for the FDA to consider regulating the quality control of e-cigarette devices and liquid ingredients.

Are e-cigarettes bad for You?

In a 2018 study, significant amounts of lead and other toxic metals were found in the vapor or aerosol inhaled by users of e-cigarettes. It stated that chronic inhalation of these metals has been linked to lung, liver, immune, cardiovascular and brain damage as well as different types of cancer.

What metals are in e-cigarettes?

Is a coil a metal?

Is vaping harmful?

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Toxic Metals Found in E-Cigarette Vapor – WebMD

The team found that e-liquid exposed to heating coils produced a vapor containing significant amounts of chromium, lead, manganese, nickel and zinc.

Your vape isn’t leaching toxic metals - Vapour.com

You may have read, sometime last week, about vaping coils leaching toxic metals into eliquid.It was pretty big news in certain circles, and everyone from The Sun to Mashable decided to run with the story.. And why wouldn’t they?

How does vaping work?

Unlike traditional smoking, vaping works by heating liquids that contain nicotine.

What device did the researchers use to examine the chemical content of e-liquid, vapor and residue?

The researchers used the vapers' own e-cigarette devices when examining the chemical content of e-liquid, vapor and residue.

How many vapers were recruited to the Hopkins study?

In the Hopkins study, published Feb. 21 in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, investigators recruited 56 vapers in the Baltimore area to see whether the heating process introduces toxins into what is inhaled. The researchers used the vapers' own e-cigarette devices when examining the chemical content of e-liquid, vapor and residue.

What is in e-liquid?

The team found that e-liquid exposed to heating coils produced a vapor containing significant amounts of chromium, lead, manganese, nickel and zinc. Highly toxic arsenic was also found in both the e-liquid and the heated vapor among a subset of 10 vapers, though how that metal got into the unheated e-liquid remains unclear.

Do new coils produce more toxins?

The team also noted that toxic metal levels seemed to be higher among vapers who changed their heating coils more often, suggesting that new coils may produce more toxins than older ones.

Does vaping put you at risk?

Vaping manufacturers knowingly put you at risk.

Is vaping a safe alternative to smoking?

Toxic Metals Found in E-Cigarette Vapor. MONDAY, Feb. 26, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- If you think that "vaping" is a safe alternative to smoking, new research suggests you might be inadvertently inhaling unsafe levels of toxic metals. Scientists say the tiny metal coils that heat the liquid nitrogen in e-cigarettes may contaminate ...

What are the toxic metals in e-cigarettes?

Significant amounts of toxic metals, including lead, leak from some e-cigarette heating coils and are present in the aerosols inhaled by users, according to a study from scientists at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

What metals are toxic in aerosols?

Of the metals significantly present in the aerosols, lead, chromium, nickel and manganese were the ones of most concern, as all are toxic when inhaled. The median lead concentration in the aerosols, for example, was about 15 µg/kg, or more than 25 times greater than the median level in the refill dispensers. Almost 50 percent of aerosol samples had lead concentrations higher than health-based limits defined by the Environmental Protection Agency. Similarly, median aerosol concentrations of nickel, chromium and manganese approached or exceeded safe limits.

What are e-cigarette coils made of?

E-cigarette heating coils typically are made of nickel, chromium and a few other elements, making them the most obvious sources of metal contamination, although the source of the lead remains a mystery. Precisely how metals get from the coil into the surrounding e-liquid is another mystery. “We don’t know yet whether metals are chemically leaching from the coil or vaporizing when it’s heated,” Rule says. In an earlier study of the 56 vapers, led by Angela Aherrera, MPH, a DrPH student at the Bloomberg School, the levels of nickel and chromium in urine and saliva were related to those measured in the aerosol, confirming that e-cigarette users are exposed to these metals.

How does an e-cigarette work?

E-cigarettes typically use a battery-supplied electric current that passes through a metal coil to heat nicotine-containing “e-liquids,” creating an aerosol—a mix including vaporized e-liquid and tiny liquid droplets . Vaping, the practice of inhaling this aerosol as if it were cigarette smoke, is now popular especially among teens, young adults and former smokers. A 2017 survey of 8th-, 10th- and 12th-grade students in public and private schools, sponsored by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, found that about one in six had used e-cigarettes in the previous 30 days.

Is arsenic in vapes toxic?

The researchers also detected significant levels of arsenic, a metal-like element that can be highly toxic, in refill e-liquid and in the corresponding tank e-liquid and aerosol samples from 10 of the 56 vapers. How the arsenic got into these e-liquids is yet another mystery—and another potential focus for regulators.

Do e-cigarettes contain metal?

Consistent with prior studies, they found minimal amounts of metals in the e-liquids within refilling dispensers, but much larger amounts of some metals in the e-liquids that had been exposed to the heating coils within e-cigarette tanks. The difference indicated that the metals almost certainly had come from the coils. Most importantly, the scientists showed that the metal contamination carried over to the aerosols produced by heating the e-liquids.

What metals are in vaping?

Studies have confirmed the presence of several heavy metals in vaping devices including lead, nickel, chromium, and manganese, with the amount increasing in high-voltage products.

What are the causes of heavy metal poisoning?

Heavy metal poisoning usually occurs due to pollution and contamination of air, water, food, or medicine, industrial exposure, improperly coated food containers, or ingestion of lead-based paint. Symptoms of poisoning can vary depending on the type of metal in question.

How to contact Juul?

If you or someone you love developed heavy metal poisoning from using e-cigarette products like JUUL, reach out to us online or by phone at (267) 214-8608 to schedule a consultation. Categories. JUUL E-Cigarettes.

Is Juul a good alternative to tobacco?

E-cigarettes like JUUL have been growing in popularity in the past several years, and are often marketed as a safer alternative to traditional tobacco cigarettes. However, research has demonstrated that vaping can lead to many of the same illnesses as smoking, including heavy metal poisoning.

Can e-cigarettes cause heavy metal poisoning?

Respiratory disease. We appreciate how difficult it is to heal from injuries related to e-cigarette use, including heavy metal poisoning. Such conditions can lead to significant hardship mentally, financially, and emotionally for the suffering individuals and their families.

Is vaping bad for you?

The Dangers of Vaping. Smoking e-cigarettes has been proven to be equally as detrimental as traditional cigarettes, if not even more dangerous. Vaping can lead to heavy metal poisoning and similar issues found in cigarette smokers.

What metals are in vape liquid?

The researchers then measured the levels of a number of toxic metals like lead, chromium, nickel, and manganese, both in the eliquid and in the vapour. They found a significantly higher level of these metals in the vapour than in the eliquid, and concluded that something inside the vaping devices was leaching metal into the eliquid either while the eliquid was sitting in the tank, or when the eliquid was vapourised.

Is vaping bad for you?

For example, since nicotine is a stimulant, it puts a mild stress on your body, just like caffeine does, and that’s probably not ideal. The goal of vaping isn’t har m elimination, but harm reduction.

Is vaping safer than smoking tobacco?

Remember the PHE study from earlier this year? Where they suggested putting vaping on the NHS? That study claimed that vaping was 95% less dangerous than smoking traditional tobacco.

How many deaths are linked to vaping?

With over 2,000 illnesses and more than 45 recent deaths linked to vaping in the US, people are starting to rethink a product that was once considered virtually harmless. Vaping illness has received a lot of media attention lately as the connection between vaping and serious health issues becomes more clear.

Why is Vaping Making People Sick?

Research into exactly why vaping is dangerous is still in its early stages. But recent studies have shown that toxicity, more than anything else, is behind it all.

How Dangerous Are Heavy Metals?

Heavy metals are toxic to the nervous system and many are known to cause cancer. Metals also replace essential minerals in our cells, blocking our ability to access the nutrients that we need. Nutrient deficiencies can affect our body’s organ systems and lead to a variety of health issues.

How do heavy metals affect our body?

Heavy metals also reduce our vitality by interfering with our body’s ability to produce energy. They obstruct our cells’ natural ability to detoxify by depleting glutathione (a powerful anti-oxidant) levels and preventing glutathione production.

Why do metals accumulate over time?

Because metals aren’t biodegradable and for the most part can’t be used by our bodies, they continue to accumulate over time. The more heavy metals we accumulate, the less able we are to get rid of them and the more they affect our health. It’s a vicious cycle!

Why are heavy metals considered toxic?

Most heavy metals are considered toxic because they’re dangerous at any amount, such as lead and mercury.

How many types of metals are in e-cigarettes?

A recent study in 2019 analyzed the aerosol of some of the most popular brands of e-cigarettes. They found sixteen different types of heavy metals, the highest amount discovered to date. These metals were in concentrations high enough to be considered a serious health concern.

How did they find vapers willing to help with their research?

They “recruited 58 participants using tank-style devices through vaping conventions and flyers posted in e-cigarette shops.” Why would vape shops help any American vaping researcher, knowing that their grants are usually based on the understanding that they will produce evidence the FDA can use to regulate vapes? That’s a good question.

Is vaping a common problem?

Unfortunately, vaping researchers willing to twist their results to shape regulations are all too common. The results seem clearly misinterpreted to create fear, and it’s difficult to believe that the authors didn’t do that deliberately. Naturally, the press release was available before the study was even published, and the authors eagerly participated in the gleefully scary coverage.

Is there metal in e-liquid?

The truth of the study is that there are metals in e-liquid vapor — just not in high enough concentrations to be especially concerning. But vapers should be aware of it, and it’s probably something manufacturers should try to reduce as much as possible. That’s the story here.

Do vapers breathe vapor?

But vapers don’t breathe vapor constantly all day long. Environmental standards are the wrong way to measure something that is only inhaled occasionally.

What metals are in e-cigarettes?

Studies of samples from users, including blood and urine, showed that e-cigarettes are a source of exposure to a large list of metals, including lead and arsenic. With the exception of cadmium, e-cigarette users had more of all metals studied in their bodily fluids than smokers did.

Is a coil a metal?

The coil itself is a metal source; so are solders inside the liquid reservoir. Several of the studies show that total metal levels rise after the liquid in these devices gets heated, lending support to the theory that the heating process is what releases the elements.

Is vaping harmful?

Credit: Shutterstock. E-cigarette liquids and vapors contain metals and metalloids at levels likely to be harmful to people’s health, and people who vape have higher levels of these elements in their blood and other bodily fluids than cigarette and cigar smokers do, ...

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