Studies show potential lower carcinogens in e-cig products

VIA: http://www.journalnow.com/

As the electronic cigarette industry, analysts and critics await definitive research on the health risks of e-cigs, studies released last week added to the smoke around the issue.

The main questions about e-cigs and vaporizers, which use open liquid capsules, continue to focus on their safety and what public-health role could they play in reducing the risk from consuming tobacco products.

A January 2015 letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine by scientists from Portland State University determined that excessively high levels of formaldehyde were produced by certain e-cigs and vaporizers, especially at high voltage/high temperature levels. They found little or no formaldehyde when the devices were used at low voltage.

Formaldehyde is classified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research of Cancer. It is believed to contribute to tobacco-related disease.

The Portland State researchers have said that while many e-cig smokers don’t use the product at such high-voltage levels, there are enough who do to warrant raising concerns of a higher lifetime risk of cancer than from traditional cigarettes.

Last week, two studies were released: one that sought comparisons to the Portland State study, and the other that compared the formaldehyde production of three e-cigs products with World Health Organization standards.

Anti-tobacco advocates seized on the Portland State study as proof that e-cigs were not only unsafe, but potentially less safe than traditional cigarettes, which produce carcinogens through the burning of the tobacco.

The Portland State study received sharp criticism from e-cigs advocates, who claimed most smokers would not use the product at such high levels because it requires taking a “dry puff” that typically contains an unpleasant taste.

“From the moment last year’s New England Journal of Medicine article came out, harm reduction advocates argued that the study suffered from severe methodological flaws,” said Gregory Conley, president of the American Vaping Association.

“In the face of clear evidence that the high levels of formaldehyde were only produced because the researchers had repeatedly burnt the coil inside the vapor product being studied, the authors of that study repeatedly declined to retract their paper. Even worse, the authors were awarded for their malfeasance with a $3.5 million grant from the Food and Drug Administration.”

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Studies show potential lower carcinogens in e-cig products