Second-hand vapors from electronic cigarettes are less harmful than tobacco smoke, but they still release toxins into the air, according to new research.
For the study,
Journal of Environmental Science, Processes and Impacts, researchers at the University of Southern California analyzed vapors from e-cigarettes and found a 10-fold decrease in exposure to harmful particles compared to traditional cigarette smoke. But they did find a significant increase in exposure to some harmful metals coming from e-cigarette smoke
, Fox News reports.
E-cigarettes release no polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons — cancer-causing compounds known as organic carcinogens produced as tobacco burns. But despite having less harmful organic compounds and an overall decrease in toxic metal emissions, e-cigarette smoke did contain chromium and nickel at levels four times higher than tobacco cigarettes.
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Lead and zinc were also found in the smoke, but they occurred at levels lower than regular cigarettes.
"Our results demonstrate that overall electronic cigarettes seem to be less harmful than regular cigarettes, but their elevated content of toxic metals such as nickel and chromium do raise concerns," said study author Constantinos Sioutas, a professor at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering.