An e-cigarette works by using a battery to heat up a liquid that becomes an aerosol. This aerosol, or gas, contains nicotine, additives or other flavourings. Use of e-cigarettes is more commonly known as vaping. In the early years of its existence, vaping was considered a way for people to quit smoking, almost like a stepping down on the way to quitting.
However, in recent years, more and more studies have found that while e-cigarettes are less harmful than traditional cigarettes, they can still cause severe harm.
A new study by the University of California has found using e-cigarettes can cause damage to the eyes.
It found that vapers were 34 percent more likely to experience damaged eyesight than those who didn’t vape.
The reason behind this is because e-cigarettes/vapes, used by around 2.7 million people in the UK, contain harmful chemicals.
READ MORE: How to live longer: Best type of bread reducing both cardiovascular disease and cancer risk
The scientists behind the study think that it could be ingredients such as propylene glycol that causes the damage.
Vaping also results in oxidative stress, a type of stress that plays a role in causing chronic conditions.
Despite the findings of this study, there is not enough data to say for definite that vaping causes eye damage.
More studies need to be carried out to establish a link.
DON’T MISS
As well as being better for your health than smoking, vaping is also cheaper.
Cancer Research UK says “smoking costs more than two-and-a-half times more than smoking e-cigarettes”.
Using e-cigarettes thus burns a smaller hole in a person’s pocket too.
As to whether passive vaping, like passive smoking, can cause harm, there is no evidence to suggest it could.
