Vaping puts toxins directly into body

Published 4:46 pm EDT, Friday, June 14, 2019   Times Union

After reading the commentary, “Adding vaping regulations will empower the black market,” May 15, I feel it is important to address some facts about vaping and the use of electronic cigarettes. These devices contain nicotine, which is one of the most addictive substances known to man. The National Academy of Sciences conclusively confirmed that the propellant alone contains many harmful chemicals including propylene glycol and an ester called diacetyl, which has been known to cause the lung disease popcorn lung. Putting nicotine and poisonous chemicals into our bodies, especially for young people who are still developing, is obviously harmful.The U.S. Surgeon General (“The Health Consequences of Smoking Report,” 2014) has already told us that e-cigarette use slows brain development in teens and affects memory, concentration, learning, self-control, attention and mood. But what about those flavors? Doctors argue that the lungs are much more fragile than the gut so to inhale something that was created to eat is obviously wrong and potentially harmful and has not been studied for long enough for us to quantify just how dangerous it can be. E-cigarette products are also completely unregulated. How much nicotine is in these products? It is already known that it is more than in a cigarette, and how much and what types of other ingredients are in them? Think of how dangerous it is to use something with no ingredient or content labeling and regulation. With several safe and widely available nicotine replacement products available over the counter, why would anyone still be inhaling poison of any kind?

Jessica R. Rosman

Tobacco treatment specialist and health educator

Bassett Healthcare Cobleskill Clinic