Common Questions About Vaping Answered by a Lung Transplant Expert

Vaping, or inhaling and exhaling an aerosol produced by an e-cigarette or vape pen, has garnered national attention over the years. Although these colorful devices may look appealing and seem safer than cigarettes, they’ve resulted in thousands of hospitalizations nationwide.

Keep reading to learn from one of our experts, Ahmad Zeeshan, MD, to understand what vaping is, how it affects the lungs, answers to commonly asked questions and expert tips to live a healthy life.

What is vaping?

Vaping was initially introduced to deliver nicotine or other drugs. E-cigarettes or vapes are battery-operated devices that heat a liquid and produce an aerosol. Individuals inhale the aerosol into their lungs and simultaneously exposes bystanders to the vapor.

This vaporized form allows people to take their e-cigarette or vape pen with them wherever they go and allows for quicker access when compared to cigarettes. “When you vape, you’re not inhaling smoke, but inhaling the vaporized form of the drug,” says Dr. Zeeshan. “Many people believed, and still do believe, that vaping is safer than smoking.”

Is vaping safer than smoking cigarettes?

When it comes to determining the safety of using vapes, it’s important to remember that it took researchers years to figure out that smoking caused diseases like cancer and emphysema. Through the years, medical professionals have discovered the life-threatening effects of vaping, like lung failure.

“Many people think that because they aren’t inhaling smoke when they vape that it’s better for them than cigarettes,” says Dr. Zeeshan. “But actually, we know that the chemicals required to vaporize a substance are also serious toxins, like formaldehyde, that can cause cancer.”

When vaping, other chemicals also break down, which can cause severe inflammation of the lungs. For example, when the vaping trend began, there were reports of patients' lungs becoming inflamed because of exposure to irritants found in the vape liquid, known as popcorn lungs.

What happens in your lungs when you vape?

Vaping differs from cigarette smoke in that vaporizers have to dissolve the nicotine into a liquid to be heated into a vapor. To do this, propylene glycol is added, and the elements in the vapor heat up propylene glycol to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, which makes the aerosol particles move quickly enough to vaporize.

“Your body has natural defenses to stop cigarette smoke, such as tiny hairs and cough reflexes that prevent bigger particles from getting into your lungs. But when you vape, you breathe in tiny particles of toxic chemicals that can get further down into your lungs than cigarette smoke can,” says Dr. Zeeshan. In your lungs, these particles of broken-down chemicals can cause severe inflammation, acute respiratory distress and even cancer.

Is it safer to use nonflavored vaping products?

“Whether a vape is flavored or not, we’re still seeing people having bad reactions from vaping,” says Dr. Zeeshan. I don’t want people to think they’re safe if they vape with no flavors or vape with other harmful substances.” All vaping is bad for the lungs.

How do people end up in the hospital after vaping?

Unfortunately, there have been many cases of young people needing immediate and intensive medical care after vaping. After prolonged use, a person’s lungs can become so inflamed that oxygen can’t enter their bloodstream. An extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine is required for severe cases, and it operates like dialysis for the lungs. Other reasons people end up in the hospital after vaping are shortness of breath, chest pain, excessive cough, nausea and vomiting, among others.

Does vaping affect teens differently than adults?

Patients are more likely to survive ECMO treatment or other ventilator therapies when they’re young. However, this doesn’t mean that it affects adults more than children. Actually, the opposite might be true. “When teenagers vape excessively and require medical attention, they have a higher chance of surviving treatment than older adults,” says Dr. Zeeshan. “However, these teens are often left with lifelong debilitations.” Young people might survive vape-related illnesses, but their lungs and their bodies won’t be the same.

Vaping also affects teens more because they aren’t fully developed. “At this age, their bodies are still growing, and their brains are developing,” says Dr. Zeeshan. “This age also makes them more susceptible to things like addiction and increased risk of other behaviors. These factors put teens at a greater risk of developing health complications later in life.”

Over time, does vaping lead to lung disease or other conditions?

Vaping most likely raises your risk of lung disease. The one fact that medical professionals don’t see from smoking but are seeing from vaping is that it only takes one vaping session to put yourself at risk of lung failure. While the long-term health effects of vaping are still unknown, research shows various illnesses caused by e-cigarettes, including lung damage, COPD and lung cancer.

Tips to Keep Your Lungs Healthy and Strong

“Avoiding vaping and smoking are key preventive health measures to defend against developing lung disease,” says Dr. Zeeshan. Additionally, to keep your lungs healthy and prevent lung disease, you can:

• Avoid secondhand smoke and people who smoke or vape
• Be mindful of your environment’s air quality
• Get regular cardiovascular exercise to boost lung fitness and overall health
• Get regular checkups from your primary care physician and discuss any concerns about your lung health
• Get the pneumonia vaccine
• Get your annual flu shot and encourage others in your household to do so
• Practice deep breathing or diaphragmatic breathing exercises
• Stay home if you’re sick to avoid spreading colds and respiratory illnesses to others
• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, especially during flu season

Prevention is the best medicine when it comes to vaping and lung disease. If you or a loved one are struggling to quit vaping or smoking, reach out to your primary care provider or click here to find one near you.

Helping You Breathe Easy Today and Forever

At AdventHealth, we care for you in body, mind and spirit. We’re here to help you breathe easy today and for the rest of your life.

Our AdventHealth Transplant Institute is a designated center of excellence, meaning you can rest assured knowing you’re receiving state-of-the-art treatment from skilled and compassionate specialists like Dr. Zeeshan.

Visit us here to learn more about our lung transplant program or to request an appointment.