Yeditepe University Hospitals Chest Diseases Specialist Prof. Dr. Banu Musaffa Salepçi said, “According to experimental animal studies, electronic cigarettes increase the risk of coagulation. Therefore, it is a great threat especially to the heart. Moreover, its harmful effects are revealed day by day,” he said.

Stating that the sale of electronic cigarettes is prohibited in our country, but these cigarettes can still be accessed via the internet, Yeditepe University Hospitals Chest Diseases Specialist Prof. Dr. Banu Musaffa Salepçi explained what should be known about e-cigarettes, of which harmful effects are revealed day by day:

In Western countries where electronic cigarette use is legal, the rate of electronic cigarette usage among young adolescents who have never thought of smoking was 2-3 percent in 2011, but it has now reached 40 percent. On the other hand, scientific evidence is accumulating about the health hazards of electronic cigarettes, which are presented to the market as harmless by the tobacco industry.

What is the Difference Between Electronic Cigarettes and Cigarettes?

In electronic cigarettes, the liquid nicotine obtained from the tobacco placed in the cartridge is heated by a battery and smoked like a cigarette by creating steam. Electronic cigarettes, which cause fires and serious burns in users by the explosion, cause serious health hazards due to the chemicals it contains.

This tobacco product, which is very similar to cigarettes in its smoke and shape, contains many chemicals such as propylene glycol, glycerol, ethylene alcohol, polyethylene glycol, mercury, and lead, as well as many carcinogenic substances such as nitrosamines, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde.

What Problems Can Electronic Cigarette Cause?

Due to the toxic substances they contain, e-cigarettes weaken the immune system and reduce resistance to infections, as well as cause cell destruction in the respiratory tract and lungs, serious lung damage, and respiratory failure.

More than 2,500 cases of respiratory failure and 60 deaths between the ages of 18 and 35, of which the majority are young men, were reported by the FDA and the American Center for Disease Control in many states of America, in October 2019,

It was determined that all of these people used intense electronic cigarettes in the week before their admission to the hospital. Later, the disease was defined as electronic cigarette-related acute lung injury (EVALI).

The culprit was found to be vitamin E, which is added to the content of e-cigarettes to facilitate smoking. As can be seen, even vitamin E, which is thought not to be harmful to health, can cause loss of life when taken by the respiratory route.

It was previously shown in experimental animal studies that electronic cigarettes increase the risk of coagulation, and in a study presented at the European Respiratory Society Congress held last September, it was reported that the use of e-cigarettes may increase the tendency for coagulation in humans, leading to heart attacks and strokes due to cerebral vascular occlusion.

Does Electronic Cigarette Have Any Benefits?

It has been proven by scientific studies that electronic cigarettes also harm the person who uses them through passive smoking.

The harms of electronic cigarettes, which are claimed by the tobacco industry as a harmless tobacco product and even to be used as a smoking cessation aid, are being proven day by day.

A product derived from tobacco offered by the tobacco industry for profit is unlikely to be beneficial, therefore it cannot be used as a smoking cessation aid. On the contrary, its use is increasing day by day, even among young people who have never thought of smoking.

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