Nicotine e-cigarettes can have several harmful effects on the user. This is shown in a new report from the FHI.
The Norwegian Institute of Public Health, on behalf of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, assessed whether the use of e-cigarettes with nicotine could be harmful to health. The report is based on the results of systematic knowledge reviews and toxicological evaluation of the ingredients in e-cigarette fumes.
The report is limited to consumption patterns, changes and the different health risks between different tobacco and nicotine products. This report is also an update of a previous faculty knowledge summary from 2015.
May increase the risk of negative health effects
Based on current knowledge, the overall assessment of the FHI is that nicotine-containing e-cigarette use may have harmful health effects, including on the respiratory system and the cardiovascular system.
Like other nicotine-containing products, using e-cigarettes during pregnancy will also pose a risk to mother and baby. Similarly, nicotine can affect brain development, which is not fully developed until around 20 years of age.
In addition, there have been reports of poisoning after ingesting e-cigarette fluid, as well as damage due to explosion or overheating of the device / battery.
Most of the studies done in humans have looked at the effects of short-term use only. Long-term studies in humans are needed to accurately assess the increased risk, but such studies do not exist.
Nevertheless, the knowledge base is sufficient to conclude that the use of e-cigarettes can cause harm to health, says senior researcher Rune Becher of NIPH.
On the market since 2005
E-cigarettes were introduced to the US market between 2005 and 2010 without sufficient research to explain the potential harmful health effects of the product.
- E-cigarettes are a complex product group with a wide variety of product types and e-cigarette fluid content. This means that there will also be a great variation in what a particular user is exposed to. E-cigarettes should not be viewed as a harmless nicotine product, says Becher.
In Norway, the sale of e-cigarettes with e-liquid without nicotine is allowed. Currently, the sale of e-liquid with nicotine is illegal, but private individuals may, under certain conditions, import a limited amount for their own use. New rules have been adopted that will allow the sale of e-liquid with nicotine in Norway, based on the EU tobacco directive. The new regulation is expected to enter into force next year.
Source: Norwegian Institute of Health Public
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