- According to the CDC, e-cigarettes come in many shapes and sizes. Most have a battery, a heating element and a place to hold a liquid.
- Some e-cigarettes marketed as containing zero per cent nicotine have been found to contain nicotine.
Tobacco use remains the greatest preventable cause of death globally, killing up to half of all its users. It is known for being the leading risk factor for most non-communicable diseases, including heart disease and cancer.
It therefore comes as no surprise when WHO estimates (July 2019) that about 8 million people die globally every year due to tobacco consumption.
Tobacco control efforts have however been frustrated repeatedly by the tobacco industry, which continues to come up with new and innovative ways to prevail in the market.
The latest is the introduction of the so-called “harm reduction” products, including vapes, also known as e-cigarettes.
Vaping is the inhaling of a vapour created by an electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) or other vaping device.
This puts nicotine into the body. Nicotine is highly addictive and can slow brain development in teens and affect memory, concentration, learning, self-control, attention, and mood.
According to the CDC, e-cigarettes come in many shapes and sizes. Most have a battery, a heating element and a place to hold a liquid.
They produce an aerosol by heating a liquid that usually contains nicotine, the addictive drug in regular cigarettes, cigars, and other tobacco products, flavourings, and other chemicals that help to make the aerosol.
Users inhale this aerosol into their lungs. Bystanders can also breathe in this aerosol when the user exhales into the air.
CDC notes that e-cigarette aerosol that users breathe from the device and exhale can contain harmful and potentially harmful substances.
They include nicotine, Ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs, flavouring such as diacetyl, a chemical linked to serious lung disease, volatile organic compounds, cancer-causing chemicals and heavy metals such as nickel, tin and lead.
Some e-cigarettes marketed as containing zero per cent nicotine have been found to contain nicotine.
The World Health Organisation states that evidence reveals these products are harmful to health and are not safe but says it is too early to provide a clear answer on the long-term impact of using them or being exposed to them.
The global health agency warns that the products are particularly risky when used by children and adolescents.
Exposure of children and adolescents to nicotine can have long-lasting, damaging effects on brain development and there is risk of nicotine addiction, it adds.