Just as regular cigarette smoke can harm babies and children, so can secondhand vaping. E-cigarettes produce vapor aerosol that bystanders can breathe in, and this vapor can contain nicotine, plus other chemicals like propylene glycol and glycerin, as well as formaldehyde.
We don’t know how this exposure affects the lungs long-term, but it’s not good.
Nicotine
It is not yet clear if secondhand vaping causes any real damage to health, but it certainly has the potential. The vapor from e-cigarettes contains nicotine, which can cause irritation and damage to the respiratory system. It also contains ultra-fine particles and low levels of chemicals known to cause cancer, such as propylene glycol (PG) and formaldehyde, which can irritate the airways and increase asthma symptoms.
While the concentration of these chemicals drops rapidly once someone stops using an e-cigarette, that doesn’t mean they disappear from the environment. These chemicals will settle on surfaces, including carpets and furniture. They may react with those substances to create new chemicals, which can then be released into the air again. They can also contaminate items that people touch, such as food and drinks.
According to a paper published in Pediatrics, children are particularly at risk from these toxins. Nicotine can interfere with the nervous, respiratory and immune systems, especially damaging young lungs.
Although it is difficult to know how much exposure to secondhand vape can affect a person’s long-term health, our evidence suggests that it’s not good for anyone. The most important thing to remember is that you should never smoke or vape around children. If you have children, ask family members and friends not to do so in your home, or at least take it outside.
Formaldehyde
A colorless, flammable gas that has a pungent odor, formaldehyde is toxic at high concentrations. It is a volatile organic compound that vaporizes at room temperature and has several harmful short- and long-term health effects. It is also a known carcinogen, and exposure to its vapors can cause respiratory distress and irritate the skin. It is found in building materials, automobile exhaust, and the metabolism of some foods and drugs.
A recent study of vape vapor found that it contains small amounts of formaldehyde and other chemicals. They studied vapor from electronic cigarette devices using liquids of various flavors, nicotine concentrations, power settings, and heating coil types.
They found that secondhand vape vapor was associated with a greater risk of bronchitic symptoms in young adults, such as coughing and wheezing. This is because smoke includes flavorings like diacetyl, which has been linked to popcorn lung and can impair cilia function in the lungs. It can also contain acrolein, an organic compound that can irritate the lungs; benzene, a carcinogen that irritates the respiratory tract; and tin, lead, nickel or other metals, which help heat the liquid.
Flavorings
It doesn’t take long for a quick search on the internet to come up with multiple studies and medical professionals reinforcing that secondhand vape can do just as much harm, if not more, than secondhand smoking. The vapor exhaled during vaping contains nicotine, ultrafine particles, and low levels of cancer-causing carcinogens like formaldehyde, which can worsen asthma symptoms. When heated up, propylene glycol and glycerin ingredients in e-cigarettes can produce other harmful chemicals to breathe in, including a compound known as 2,4-dinitrophenol or NDSP.
As the vapor disperses into the air, it can also leave a residue on surfaces, resulting in children (and adults) accidentally touching and inhaling those chemicals. Some toxins can be allergens, which may trigger reactions in kids with allergies to things like nuts (often used as added flavors).
Another risk is that the aerosol from vaping can impact the function of the cilia that line our lungs and help us breathe by trapping dust and mucus. This can lead to bronchitis, coughing, congestion, phlegm and shortness of breath. It can also cause other chronic lung conditions, such as COPD or asthma. And since most people who vape are teens and young adults, these individuals are at the highest risk for serious health problems.
Heating Coils
There is a lot that we don’t know about secondhand vaping. However, the research that we do have shows that it can be just as dangerous to bystanders’ health as secondhand smoke.
E-cigarettes heat a liquid inside their inner battery-charged chamber to create vapor that you can inhale. But when those devices are used incorrectly, they can release toxic chemicals into the air. For example, the glycerin in the e-cigarette liquid can be heated to the point that it forms formaldehyde, which then irritates your lungs. E-cigarette coils can also be exposed to high temperatures, which releases benzene, a carcinogen that can irritate your lungs and nose. The heating coils can also contain lead, nickel, tin and other metals that can get aerosolized into the vapor.
While the amount of toxins in the air drops quickly after someone stops using their device, these pollutants are still in the environment and can be inhaled by children and others who are not vaping. And they can linger on surfaces where small children may inhale them when they touch them or put their hands or toys in their mouths. We don’t know how long these toxins will remain in the air and what their effects might be. But we know it’s important to ensure your child or anyone else in your family doesn’t use a vaping device indoors.
