Liquid E-Cigarette Side Effects, EVALI: Is It as Bad as Regular Cigarettes?

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In modern society, dopamine addiction is said to cause various problems.

One drawback is that when symptoms of dopamine addiction appear, people tend to seek increasingly stimulating things to trigger dopamine release.

There are many things that can disrupt the nervous system and over-stimulate dopamine, and one of them is nicotine and cigarettes.

For this reason, it is easy to see that cigarette consumption among younger age groups has been increasing more than in the past.

Even while walking down the street, you can see people smoking carelessly.

In particular, with liquid e-cigarettes, some people may think they are harmless even when around non-smokers because the flavoring removes the harsh smell unique to regular cigarettes.

Unfortunately, liquid e-cigarettes can also cause secondhand smoke exposure, and rather, the flavoring may lower the smoker’s caution, leading them to smoke even more.

Recently, EVALI, a new symptom that had not been seen with regular cigarettes, has been reported as one of the side effects of liquid e-cigarettes.

Today, let’s take a look at the side effects of liquid e-cigarettes and the symptoms of EVALI.

What is EVALI?

EVALI, which means electronic cigarette-related lung injury, is an abbreviation for E-cigarette-or vaping-use-associated lung injury.

The method of inhaling liquid nicotine and flavoring particles through an electronic device was called vaping.

It referred to a symptom in which lung injury is found by inhaling substances through such vaping.

It can be classified as acute, long-term subacute, or chronic, and if EVALI symptoms are severe, they may lead to complications more serious than those caused by regular cigarettes.

In the United States, EVALI symptoms were actually discovered in 2019 as a side effect of liquid e-cigarettes.

It can be accompanied by coughing and shortness of breath, and in severe cases, hypoxemia in the chest is a characteristic feature.

For people in whom these EVALI symptoms are confirmed, more than 90% are said to require hospitalization.

Because the spread of liquid e-cigarettes has occurred over a relatively short period, there is still no clear evidence of whether additional complications will be caused in the body over the long term.

What are the ingredients in liquid e-cigarettes?

So, what ingredients cause the side effects of liquid e-cigarettes?

Liquid e-cigarettes are largely made up of liquid nicotine, propylene glycol, glycerol, aerosol, and flavoring.

When these ingredients are inhaled as fine particles through vaping, they can generally be problematic, so caution is needed.

🚬 Nicotine

The common point between liquid e-cigarettes and regular cigarettes is nicotine.

Among them, the nicotine concentrate used in liquid e-cigarettes can reach a lethal dose even in small amounts, and it is highly addictive and risky, so caution is required.

🚬 Propylene glycol (PG)

Propylene glycol is an ingredient that helps flavoring and nicotine mix easily into the liquid.

For people whose side effects from liquid e-cigarettes especially include severe coughing, allergic reactions to this ingredient may be the cause.

🚬 Flavoring

Some people prefer liquid e-cigarettes because they do not have the harsh smell of regular cigarettes and allow you to enjoy a variety of flavors.

It is said that this natural-smelling aroma can actually increase smoking compared to when smoking regular cigarettes.

🚬 Aerosol

One of the side effects of liquid e-cigarettes is due to aerosol.

The toxic and carcinogenic aerosol released when using e-cigarettes can cause EVALI symptoms because highly concentrated ultrafine particles enter the body.

🚬 Glycerol

The reason liquid e-cigarettes produce as much smoke as regular cigarettes is the ingredient called glycerol.

Glycerol has a high viscosity, so it plays a role in binding smoke and vapor together, while also affecting throat hit.

However, it is said that there are no major side effects from glycerol in liquid e-cigarettes.

To reduce the EVALI symptoms, a side effect of liquid e-cigarettes discussed today, it is best to reduce smoking.

In particular, if you are using liquid e-cigarettes to quit smoking and avoid secondhand smoke harm, please note that they contain nicotine and also expose others to secondhand smoke, so for quitting smoking, we recommend using nicotine-free cessation patches or nicotine-free chewing gum.

Thank you.

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