Smoking traditional cigarettes with e-cigarettes has a detrimental effect on your health

In addition to the use of e-cigarettes, smoking traditional cigarettes has the same health consequences as smoking alone, according to a new study published today in the American Heart Association’s flagship journal. circulation..

Smoking, a well-known link to cardiovascular disease and death, appears to be declining. The use of e-cigarettes, known as vaping, is becoming more and more popular, but research into the effects of vaping on the body is limited.

In a large data analysis of more than 7,100 US adults over the age of 18, researchers investigated the association between smoking as a biomarker and the use of e-cigarettes with inflammation and oxidative stress. Inflammation and oxidative stress are major causes of smoking-induced cardiovascular disease, and their biomarkers have been shown to be predictors of cardiovascular events such as heart attack and heart failure.

This study is one of the first studies to investigate the association between cigarette and e-cigarette use behavior and biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress using nationally representative data. Given the delay between exposure to tobacco and the symptoms and diagnosis of the disease, identifying an association between the use of e-cigarettes and sensitive biomarkers of asymptomatic cardiovascular damage is new, such as e-cigarettes Needed to understand the long-term effects of tobacco products.

Andrew C. Stokes, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, First Author, Global Health, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston

The researchers used data from the Tobacco and Health Population Assessment (PATH) study, a nationally representative longitudinal cohort in the United States. The analysis of this study was limited to adults aged 18 years and older from Wave 1 of a survey conducted from 2013 to 2014. Included was the collection of blood and urine samples.

We analyzed five biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress. Participants were categorized into four categories based on the use of traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes within 30 days. No use of cigarettes and electronic cigarettes. Exclusive vaping; Smoking exclusively for cigarettes; Double use of cigarettes and e-cigarettes. To test the robustness of the initial results, scientists repeated the analysis in a subgroup of respondents, including respondents who had not used other tobacco products for the past 30 days.

More than half (58.6%) of the study participants did not use cigarettes or e-cigarettes. Almost 2% vaporized exclusively. About 30% smoked tabako nomi. And about 10% used e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes.

Results of analysis:

• Participants who vaporized exclusively showed similar inflammatory and oxidative stress profiles to those who did not smoke or did not use e-cigarettes.
• Participants who smoked exclusively, and who used cigarettes and e-cigarettes, had higher levels of all biomarkers evaluated compared to those who did not use cigarettes or e-cigarettes.
• Participants who smoked exclusively had significantly lower levels of inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers than those who smoked exclusively. However, participants who used cigarettes and e-cigarettes had levels of all inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers comparable to those who smoked exclusively.

“This study adds to the limited study of biological measures for people who use e-cigarettes,” said Rosemary Robert, co-author of the study and deputy chief science and medical director of the American Heart Association. Dr. Son said. Director of the Tobacco Center for Regulatory Science, funded by the National Institute of Health Sciences / Food and Drug Administration, which supported the study. “I think there is an important message for individuals who believe that using e-cigarettes while continuing to smoke some flammable cigarettes reduces risk. This commonly seen dual-use pattern is an inflammatory marker. This is not the case as it was not associated with a decrease in the level of tobacco. It may provide risk mitigation in this particular area. “

The researchers also conducted an extensive analysis to test the results against the effects of related behaviors such as the use of other tobacco products and marijuana, and indirect smoking exposure. The results were consistent throughout the additional analysis.

The large population sample in this study makes the findings applicable to the adult population in the United States. One of the limitations of this study is the cross-cutting approach of examining population data at any given time, making it impossible to establish a causal relationship.

The researchers said the study emphasized the risk of smoking and the importance of ongoing public education on the failure of dual-use to reduce the risk.

“This result could be used to advise patients on the potential risks of using both cigarettes and e-cigarettes,” Stokes said. “Some smokers choose to use e-cigarettes to reduce the frequency of smoking. They are dual users of both products, rather than completely switching from one to the other. Often, when e-cigarettes are used as a means to quit smoking, smoking must be completely replaced and ultimately planned to achieve freedom from all tobacco products. there is.”