How harmless are those scented vapes?

Our students, training in Cumbria in dentistry and medicine, have observed that less tobacco is being smoked, while vapes are on the rise.

This is good news because smoking tobacco is one of the largest preventable causes of disease, disability, and premature death. Vaping devices are less damaging to health than cigarettes. But they are not harmless and some contain nicotine.

Droves of school-age youngsters use vapes. A report from Workington in November 2023 found over half of their school-aged population had used nicotine-containing vapes.  The World Health Organisation, many governments and Cumbria County Council recommend action be taken to stop sales of nicotine and tobacco substances, including vapes, to those under 18.

Why the fuss about nicotine? It is an insecticide made by several plants, including tobacco, brought from the Americas by Sir Walter Raleigh. Nicotine will poison insects such as caterpillars, or mites, through their nervous systems.

For humans, nicotine affects the brain within seconds of being smoked. It binds strongly to receptors on nerve cells.  The effects of nicotine take some days to disappear. These receptors are used in large neural networks: activating them causes pleasure by increasing dopamine and endorphins. Nicotine also stimulates adrenaline production, elevating alertness, heart rate and blood pressure.

Dr Colin Michie, Associate Dean of the University of Central Lancashire School of Medicine and Dentistry. (Image: UCLAN)Withdrawal from nicotine is likely to cause anxiety, restlessness, and difficulty with sleep. Nicotine alters brain circuits: users experience powerful new cravings and a compulsion to use it again. This is how addiction starts. Nicotine also has considerable influence on the learning and memory areas, particularly in developing adolescent brains.

Vaping concerns extend beyond nicotine. Ingredients in vaping fluids change, and their contents are rarely clear from the packaging. These ‘juices’ usually contain colourants, flavourings and possibly a humectant to keep the airways moist. There may be contaminants including heavy metals.

Bootleg vape liquids, popular because they are cheaper, or ‘cooler’, may contain unknown additives. In the United States in 2019, over 2000 hospital admissions for acute lung damage were related to the use of vaping products. Vaping fluids have also been linked to cell stress and pathology in the lower airways. No studies of long-term vaping exist to measure its possible damages over time. Furthermore, there are no recognised methods to successfully wean young adults off vaping. General practitioners are rarely aware of the magnitude of local vaping.

Rituals around taking nicotine are part of our cultures – filling a pipe, preparing snuff, chewing baccy, using a hookah pipe, lighting up cigarettes or cigars. Vaping has its own social scenes and subcultures, clustered in miasmas of multi-flavoured, addictive clouds.

There are an estimated three to four million users in the UK. Longer-term studies of vapers suggest many users progress to using tobacco and alcohol. Vaping from adolescence is connected to a greater risk of substance abuse in adulthood, but knowledge of this is not having a sobering effect on young vapers.

For beautiful Cumbria, it needs documenting that vaping is a polluting habit. Vapes are plastic electric devices with a lithium battery. To make them, precious resources are consumed, and, unfortunately, they are rarely recycled. The batteries can cause fires and explosions in waste collections. Vapes damage not only our health, but also environmental health.

Some final words come from Cumbria County Council: If you don’t smoke, don’t start vaping; if you do smoke, stop altogether if you can – and our pharmacies can help; and if you can’t stop, or don’t want to – switch to vaping.