Seemingly-reliable sources give you diametrically-opposed views on vaping. Are e-cigarettes “95% less harmful” than cigarettes, or aren’t they? Are vapes gateway drugs that lead people to smoke, or are they a great way to give up smoking? Is it both? Neither?
In Episode 5 of The Studies Show, Tom and Stuart look into the research on the health effects of vaping and try to answer these questions - as well as explaining the origin of the fabled “popcorn lung”.
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Show Notes
* The WHO praises India for banning vapes
* Article on The Conversation arguing the “vaping is 95% less harmful than cigarettes” claim has been debunked
* Long UK Government/King’s College London report defending the “95% less harmful” claim (2022)
* Earlier (2018) Public Health England report with similar conclusions
* New Nicotine Alliance (unaffiliated anti-smoking charity) report with useful references on addictiveness, risk, etc.
* Popcorn lung: Science-Based Medicine piece illustrated with lungs full of popcorn; Johns Hopkins piece saying popcorn lung is a concern; American Lung Association piece agreeing; Cancer Research UK piece saying no cases ever linked to vaping
* Study retracted for erroneously comparing different age groups; study retracted for time-travelling heart-attacks
* UK cigarette smoking rate dropping in adults; dropping in children
* Tom’s article on this from 2017
* 2017 study showing vaping and cigarette smoking correlate in teenagers
* 2022 Cochrane review on vaping and smoking cessation
* Study of vaping in pregnant mice; press release; article in The Sun with scary headline
* Study on vaping vs. nicotine patches for smoking cessation in pregnant women
* People’s beliefs about vaping: increasing belief that it’s as dangerous as smoking in adults; in adults again; in children
Credits
The Studies Show is produced by Julian Mayers at Yada Yada Productions.
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