07/09/2025
Va**ng continues to expose users to harmful chemicals and heavy metals.
"When v**es started to become popular in the mid-2010s, the tiny cartridges carried big promises. They were presented as a healthier alternative to ci******es and a path to quit smoking.
Now, researchers are coming to understand the hazards of v**es themselves. In a study from last month, for example, a team of scientists analyzed the mist from popular v**es and found such high levels of heavy metals that one researcher thought their machine had malfunctioned. Other studies have suggested that va**ng can affect the heart, lungs and brain.
Experts said they were worried that va**ng may become harder to study after the Trump administration shut down a unit focused on smoking and health. The government has also slashed funds for programs that help people stop va**ng.
Data on the long-term health effects is limited, because v**es are relatively new and constantly evolving. Many people who use them are in their teens or 20s; it might take a while before further effects become apparent. Consumers also often use both ci******es and v**es, which makes it difficult to isolate harms from va**ng alone. Va**ng is still less common than cigarette use among U.S. adults, 4.5 percent of whom said they v**ed in 2021. Nearly 8 percent of high school students reported va**ng in the last month in a 2024 survey.
Even so, “common sense tells you — your mom would tell you — that a superheated chemical inhaling right into your lungs isn’t going to be good,” said Dr. James H. Stein, a professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine. Increasingly, research is pointing to the reality that while v**es do not contain the same dangerous chemicals as ci******es, they come with their own harms.
Cardiovascular Concerns
A hit from a v**e immediately stresses the cardiovascular system. Your heart rate rises and your blood vessels constrict, which can stiffen arteries in the heart over time. When you v**e “all day long, over and over and over again — you’re basically walking around with high blood pressure,” Dr. Stein said. These effects could raise the risk of developing an irregular heart rhythm, stroke and even a heart attack.
When v**es heat liquids to higher temperatures, they can release larger amounts of harmful chemicals that can seep into the lungs, enter the bloodstream and flow to the heart, said Irfan Rahman, a researcher at the University of Rochester Medicine who studies ni****ne products. The liquids in e-ci******es can release known carcinogens, like formaldehyde and acetaldehyde, when heated. These and other chemicals can damage blood vessels, drive inflammation and contribute to cardiovascular disease risk.
When people quit va**ng, they can also experience ni****ne withdrawal that can increase heart rate and blood pressure, Dr. Stein added.
Lung Issues
Va**ng causes inflammation in the airways and lungs that can become chronic, Dr. Stein said. It can also exacerbate asthma and symptoms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and can lead to a persistent cough and shortness of breath.
While we don’t know yet whether v**es cause cancer, which can take decades to develop, we know they can expose users to substances associated with increased cancer risk. Brett Poulin, an assistant professor of environmental toxicology at the University of California, Davis, tested three popular disposable v**e brands and found that they released high levels of nickel and antimony, heavy metals linked to lung cancer. (Dr. Poulin’s team also found that v**es release large amounts of lead, a neurotoxin.)
Chemicals used in flavored v**es, especially disposable ones, can also damage cell membranes, which increases the risk of lung damage and cancer, as well as heart disease, Dr. Stein said.
In rare cases, patients have developed lung scarring and breathing issues known as “popcorn lung” after inhaling diacetyl, a compound in some flavored v**es. (Major v**e brands currently say they do not use diacetyl.) In 2019, an outbreak of serious lung injuries, including 68 deaths, was linked to v**es that contained vitamin E acetate.
Oral Health
As with ci******es, pouches and other products that contain ni****ne, v**es limit blood flow to the gums, which makes them more vulnerable to disease and infection. Ni****ne can also damage gum tissue, Dr. Rahman said.
Addiction
Dr. Pamela Ling, the director of the U.C.S.F. Center for To***co Control Research and Education, has worked with teens who sleep with v**es tucked under their pillows and reach for them first thing in the morning.
Research has shown that e-ci******es are addictive. Dependence can be especially problematic for adolescents, whose brains are developing. There are still some support programs for quitting, and smoking cessation medications may offer relief. But it can also be an agonizing process, bringing on withdrawal symptoms like depression, anxiety and irritation.
Compounding those concerns: Even more addictive v**es that contain higher levels of ni****ne are hitting the market.
Dr. Ling said it was now easy to find v**es that have 20,000 puffs of ni****ne — an amount rivaling 100 packs of ci******es.
“New products come out on the market faster than we can do science,” she said."
