Second Hand Vape: Is It Harmful or Not?

"is second hand vape smoke bad?"

A question that has come to the minds of many new vapers. Alternatively, as a current vaper or e-cigarette user, you may newly be wondering if "is it safe to vape around children?". 

Patented in the 1960’s, e cigarettes really did not have the attention as they today. And with that attention, all the hysteria on vaping and it's controversial effects on health, these question arose.

Valid questions considering the media mentions that vaping receives and it's oftentimes comparison to cigarette smoking. While the process of vaping and smoking are different, the question still remains.

What is second hand vapor?

To someone not familiar with e cigarettes the first idea that may spring to mind when seeing the exhale of a vape hit is the word "smoke". But with a little bit of education on the subject of vaping one can quickly learn the mechanics of vape devices and learn that their initial guess was wrong. 

A vape hit emits aerosol, not smoke. 

Cigarettes emit smoke, a product of combustion. Equal to burning any substance with fire. This produces carcinogenic particles including tar, carbon monoxide and other cancer-causing chemicals.

Vape clouds are a product of heating e- juice with a metal vape coil that is typically housed in an atomizer. 

 

So does this mean second hand vapor is not dangerous? Let’s look at some studies.

Studies on Vaping and Second Hand Aerosol

Studies such as a 2017 UC San Diego depict a different message than what has been in the headlines. Researchers went into 193 homes to measure fine particles left behind by smokers and vapers living inside the residence. They found no effect on the air quality due to vaping.

Another study by NIOSH, a CDC agency, went directly to the vape cloud source, a vape shop. A place where vape aerosol is constantly being produced by customers. What did they find? Toxic levels below the occupational exposure limits.

And finally, a research article conducted by Igor Burstyn, an expert in the field of toxicology at Drexel University. While the research that Dr. Burstyn and his team did found no traces of contaminants, they could not confirm what harm direct exposure could do.

So, is second hand vape dangerous?

Unfortunately, because vaping is still fairly new and long term studies, for the most part, have not been done to state a certain answer, the question of "is second-hand vape bad?" is for now inconclusive.

The technology to measure the true health effects on vaping, as well as case studies built from an extended period of research has simply not been conducted in a manner that is universally held to be true. 

Meaning a definite yes or no answer to the question of "is second hand smoke dangerous?" has not been determined.

What are your thoughts? Have you decided to change to vaping to possibly not affect the ones around you or in your home?