As with cigarette smoking, e-cigarettes have major adverse effects on the cardiovascular system. And, in contrast to cancer, these changes occur quickly. Two recent papers, Association of Electronic Cigarette Exposure on Cardiovascular Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis and Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems and Cardiovascular/Cardiometabolic Health, provide comprehensive summaries on the specific adverse biological effectsContinue reading “Two new reviews summarize how e-cigs adversely affect the cardiovascular system”
Category Archives: heart disease
Even a little smoking is bad: Implications for harm reduction
I just came on two important papers — Association of Long-term, Low-Intensity Smoking With All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality in the National Institutes of Health-AARP Diet and Health Study and Association between long-term low-intensity cigarette smoking and incidence of smoking-related cancer in the National Institutes of Health-AARP cohort by Maki Inoue Choi and her colleagues atContinue reading “Even a little smoking is bad: Implications for harm reduction”
Using e-cigs, cigs, heated tobacco products, or marijuana once a day increases risk of heart arrythmias and causes remodeling of the heart
Huiliang Qiu, Matt Springer, and colleagues’ paper “Increased vulnerability to atrial and ventricular arrhythmias caused by different types of inhaled tobacco or marijuana products” makes two important points: (1) even very short daily exposures to tobacco and marijuana products have serious cumulative effects on the heart, and (2) nicotine and THC, the psychoactive components ofContinue reading “Using e-cigs, cigs, heated tobacco products, or marijuana once a day increases risk of heart arrythmias and causes remodeling of the heart“
Compromised blood vessel function caused by cigarettes and e-cigarettes is mediated by lung irritation
Cigarettes and e-cigarettes deliver the addictive drug nicotine to the lungs where it is absorbed and rapidly delivered to the brain. The holy grail of the idea that e-cigarettes are a form of harm reduction is that the e-cigarette aerosol has fewer specific bad chemicals than cigarette smoke. New research from Pooneh Nabavizadeh and colleaguesContinue reading “Compromised blood vessel function caused by cigarettes and e-cigarettes is mediated by lung irritation”
One reason why dual use of ecigs and cigs is worse than using either product alone
Once upon a time, people – including me – thought eicgs were just cigarettes without the combustion, so they had to be less toxic. By this logic, dual users (people who used e-cigs and cigs at the same time) were probably no worse off than smokers. Now we know that is wrong. While they doContinue reading “One reason why dual use of ecigs and cigs is worse than using either product alone”
FDA proposed updating its HPHC list in 2019; it needs to finish the job
One of the nerdy, but very important, parts of the FDA tobacco product regulatory process is the list of “Hazardous and Potentially Hazardous Compounds” (HPHC) list that FDA released in 2012. This list contains 93 bad chemicals — mostly carcinogens — that FDA identified as important when assessing the risks of tobacco products. It hasContinue reading “FDA proposed updating its HPHC list in 2019; it needs to finish the job”
E-cig science has marched on; it is important that decision making and education be based on the current state of knowledge
In January 2021, I published a blog post making the point that the 2018 National Academy of Science Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report on e-cigarettes was out of date. Now, Physicians for a Smoke Free Canada has published an extensive update detailing specifically how the science on e-cigarettes has advanced since then 2018, noting thatContinue reading “E-cig science has marched on; it is important that decision making and education be based on the current state of knowledge”
A wide range of e-cigarettes similarly harm artery function as much as cigarettes
The whole harm reduction and reduced exposure frameworks that the FDA and others use to assess alternative inhaled tobacco products assumes that the specific details of the aerosol that these products deliver to users has a substantial effect on risks. New research by Poonam Rao, Matt Springer, and their colleagues at UCSF raises serious questionsContinue reading “A wide range of e-cigarettes similarly harm artery function as much as cigarettes”
Ecig use associated with about double the odds of erectile dysfunction
Cigarette smoking causes erectile dysfunction, a point highlighted in the California Tobacco Control Program’s 1998 ad, “Gala Event” (below). There are multiple pathways between smoking and erectile dysfunction, including adverse effects of nicotine, depression in testosterone, increased risk of cardiovascular and other disease and adverse effects on the ability of arteries to dilate (get larger).Continue reading “Ecig use associated with about double the odds of erectile dysfunction”
World Heart Federation highlights cardiovascular risks of e-cigs, calls for strict regulation, supports countries with bans
On October 18, 2021 the World Heart Federation released a policy brief “E-cigarettes: A new threat to cardiovascular health,” (press release) that provides an overview of the evidence that e-cigarette use has a wide range of adverse effects on the cardiovascular system that are reflected as an increased risk of heart attack at a populationContinue reading “World Heart Federation highlights cardiovascular risks of e-cigs, calls for strict regulation, supports countries with bans”
Stanton Glantz blog 