Jordan North started vaping to quit smoking
Presenter and podcaster Jordan North started vaping to quit smoking. He realized that he was dependent on both and was not satisfied. Confused by conflicting reports about the potential harms of e-cigarettes, he researched the evidence himself for a BBC Three documentary.
I hate to admit it, but I started smoking when I was 16.
I tried and failed to quit many times, but I found that switching to vaping really helped me lose weight.
But I soon reached a stage where I was vaping far more than I smoked cigarettes in a day.
Now I wonder – did I just replace one bad habit with another?
Health experts generally agree that electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are a good way for adults to quit smoking because they contain fewer toxins than cigarette smoke.
Jordan North is deciding once and for all whether it's time to quit vaping.
However, many young people are quitting cigarettes and quickly switching to e-cigarettes.
A survey of 18- to 24-year-olds who use disposable e-cigarettes found that about half had never smoked a cigarette. I think many of them, like me, think e-cigarettes are harmless.
I have several friends who have never smoked but now vape. They say they are addicted. That's something I'm starting to worry about too.
What's inside a VAPE?
I wanted to fully understand the health effects of vaping and find out what's actually inside these tiny pieces of plastic.
So I went to the University of Sunderland and completed my degree there. There I met Dr. Stephen Childs, who has done a lot of research on e-cigarettes.
I brought some legal disposable e-cigs and he tore them up right in front of me.
The smell of the liquid was incredibly strong. I was a little scared to ask what was inside them, but I knew I needed to know.
Disassembling e-cigarettes with Dr Stephen Childs at the University of Sunderland
Dr. Childs said the vapor inhaled from e-cigarettes contains nicotine, which is addictive, as well as small amounts of other chemicals used to enhance flavor.
The e-liquid in a vape also contains the types of additives commonly found in processed foods, such as sauces and cake mixes. It's safe to eat, but what happens if you inhale it?
“There are some short-term studies that suggest that inhaling these types of substances can cause things like inflammation in the lungs. [additives] It’s a chemical,” Dr. Childs told me.
illegal electronic cigarettes
In the UK, disposable e-cigarettes must comply with a number of regulations. Nicotine content should not exceed 2% (equivalent to about 20 to 40 cigarettes).
However, when visiting stores selling e-cigarettes or researching on the internet, we found examples of illegal e-cigarettes containing 10 times that amount.
Dr. Childs said even legal e-cigarettes contain thousands of chemicals that aren't listed on the packaging. Although it's not against the law to do this, I still felt cheated.
The Chartered Trading Standards Institute estimates that a third of e-cigarettes on the market in the UK are likely to be illegal versions.
But it can be very difficult to tell which ones are compliant just by looking at the packaging, and we've found dodgy versions being sold in many high street stores.
There are a few things to keep in mind.
- British regulations state that disposable e-cigs cannot contain more than 2ml of e-liquid (equivalent to about 600 puffs).Anything larger may be illegal
- How big is the health warning? It must cover approximately one-third of the package and display the words “This product contains nicotine, which is highly addictive” on the front and back.
- What level of nicotine content are you advertising? The upper limit for legal disposable e-cigs is 2%
More and more young people are taking up vaping
“Toxic chemicals”
To find out more about the illicit market, I visited the InterScientific Institute in Liverpool. There, they inspect thousands of illegal e-cigarettes seized from across England.
Of the 24 recent samples of e-cigarettes the lab examined this year, nearly one-third contained lead.
It is a toxic chemical, and the World Health Organization says high levels of exposure in young people can affect brain development.
They also found that almost 90% of the samples contained high levels of nickel. This is a metal found in coins and electronic products, and prolonged exposure can be hazardous to your health.
In addition, laboratory tests detected compounds called carbonyls. When e-liquids are heated, these break down into chemicals such as formaldehyde and acetaldehyde. These are possible carcinogens. That means it can cause cancer.
As it turns out, about one-third of these e-cigarettes claimed to be nicotine-free, when in fact that wasn't the case.
We don't know where these illegal e-cigarettes are made. There is no UK authority monitoring how they are manufactured.
So who's in charge here? In England and Wales, Trading Standards, the illegal and unfair trade watchdog, can visit stores and seize illegal e-cigarettes. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own teams.
I spent a day with Trading Standards officers raiding shops in Newcastle.
Some store owners were crafty and kept e-cigarettes in the back room, while other stores had e-cigarettes on display. Trading Standards officers seized around 1,000 e-cigarettes that day.
On patrol with trading standards officers in Newcastle
However, the number of companies actually prosecuted for selling illegal e-cigarettes appears to be very small.
Our team contacted 100 councils and 80 responded. It was announced that approximately 2,200 companies will be found to be selling illegal e-cigarettes in 2023.
Of these companies, Trading Standards recommended prosecution for less than one in 20.
In January, the UK government announced a ban on disposable e-cigarettes in a bid to tackle the rise in vaping among young people. It also said it would give Trading Standards the power to impose on-the-spot fines on anyone found selling illegal products.
Non-disposable e-cigarettes remain legal, but a tax on e-cigarettes was introduced in the budget earlier this month.
But if we ban single-use products, we also need to remove dangerous products from our streets. Otherwise, people may rely on them instead.
difficulty breathing
Scientists continue to study the potential health risks of e-cigarettes, but say it could take decades to know their long-term effects.
So how do you decide whether to continue vaping while you wait for more information?
Meeting Gemma in Essex was the moment I decided I didn't want to vape anymore.
The 34-year-old has been using both legal and illegal e-cigarettes regularly for 10 years.
She was a light smoker, but initially turned to e-cigarettes to quit smoking. But then it became a problem in itself.
“I was vaping all day, every day, in my car, first thing in the morning,” she told me.
“I would have thought, 'Where is my e-cig?'”
Gemma was diagnosed with a lung disease that could be linked to e-cigarette use
Unfortunately, last year doctors diagnosed Gemma with COPD, a serious lung disease that causes breathing difficulties.
It's rare to find someone this young. They don't know for sure, but her doctors think years of vaping may be the culprit.
There are days when she is really suffering and we are told that her life expectancy is getting short.
“It's basically a terminal illness,” she says. “But that doesn't mean I'll die within the next year. I could live up to 20 years.”
Listening to Gemma's story made me realize that you can't replace one addiction with another.
It turns out that there are still many unknowns. Indeed, e-cigarettes may be better than cigarettes, but we still don't know how e-cigs will affect our health.
However, the risk feels very real to me now, so I think it's better to take on the risk overall. I am proud to say that I have never touched an e-cigarette since filming this documentary.
