No safety guarantees over vaping by docs

Pulmonologists in the city are not willing to vouch for

vaping

as a safer alternative due to the unavailability of research on

e-cigarettes

in India. “In India, vaping is a very recent trend and we don’t really know the long-term impact of using vaping devices, therefore, banning it does not seem to be a bad idea until a lot of research is done,” said Dr Mallu Gangadhar Reddy, senior pulmonologist at Yashodha Hospitals.

Supporters of vaping cite estimates by Public Health England and Royal College of Physicians in UK which indicate that vaping is 95% safer than smoking combustible cigarettes. “E-cigarette cartridges usually contain glyceroland heating this cartridge creates an aerosol that vapers then inhale. The aerosol from e-cigarettes contain many potentially harmful chemicals, including lead and other heavy metals which can damage the cardiovascular system,” said Dr M Ravindranath, a city-based pulmonologist. TNN