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The e-cigarette manufacturers have succeeded alarmingly well in conveying the message that e-cigarette smoke is just water vapour. None explicitly say this now

The e-cigarette manufacturers have succeeded alarmingly well in conveying the message that e-cigarette smoke is just water vapour. None explicitly say this now that government regulation is picking up, but it took root nonetheless. A quick glance at the research published on this topic shows that the vapour from e-cigarettes contains significantly lower but not negligible amounts of carcinogenic compounds. If you are a smoker wanting to quit, this is probably a good trade off, but if you don't smoke, you are likely not to appreciate being treated to an unnecessary increase of harmful substances in the air you live and work in. You are right to point out that these studies usually focus on a particular brand of e-cigarette filling or a limited range of them. Funky additives can add any amount of complex by-products to the vapour exhaled, further exacerbating the health threat. So yeah, treating e-cigarettes as normal cigarettes seems very sensible. > I'd prefer if strong perfumes were also banned in public places; particularly restaurants and any form of waiting area. Or deodorant for that matter. I vastly prefer a subtle hint of Chanel No. 5 over the musky clouds of deodorant excessively applied by teenagers to mask the underlying teenage angst.

evgen 10y ago
Care to cite the research? I have seen no carcinogens noted, although there are some heavy metal compounds that are worth concern.
- Freak_NL 10y ago
  I can't cite any research with authority, as I lack the academic qualifications to do so in this field — like most of us I depend on the insights of those who do to form an opinion — but studies like these¹⁺² seem to indicate that e-cigarette vapour are at least not devoid of carcinogens. Searches on Google Scholar yield a number of papers that mostly seem to indicate that more study is needed to fully comprehend the toxicity of e-cigarette vapour, but that via second-hand smoke (or vapour) you are at least exposed to nicotine, and probably to some quantities of other toxins, possibly including carcinogens. 1: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1438463913001533 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1438463913... 2: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmc1413069#t=article http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmc1413069#t=article
  - evgen 10y ago
    First of all "toxins" is not a word you want to be using in such discussions. It is a term that tends to be thrown around by people who do not understand chemistry. It is all about the dosage, and so far most research shows that we are talking about some very low doses at best. The heavy metals I noted are probably the most concerning, since those actually do bioaccumulate, but "probably" and "possibly" are not sufficient here.

evgen 10y ago

Care to cite the research? I have seen no carcinogens noted, although there are some heavy metal compounds that are worth concern.

Freak_NL 10y ago
I can't cite any research with authority, as I lack the academic qualifications to do so in this field — like most of us I depend on the insights of those who do to form an opinion — but studies like these¹⁺² seem to indicate that e-cigarette vapour are at least not devoid of carcinogens. Searches on Google Scholar yield a number of papers that mostly seem to indicate that more study is needed to fully comprehend the toxicity of e-cigarette vapour, but that via second-hand smoke (or vapour) you are at least exposed to nicotine, and probably to some quantities of other toxins, possibly including carcinogens. 1: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1438463913001533 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1438463913... 2: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmc1413069#t=article http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmc1413069#t=article
- evgen 10y ago
  First of all "toxins" is not a word you want to be using in such discussions. It is a term that tends to be thrown around by people who do not understand chemistry. It is all about the dosage, and so far most research shows that we are talking about some very low doses at best. The heavy metals I noted are probably the most concerning, since those actually do bioaccumulate, but "probably" and "possibly" are not sufficient here.