Don't be. Confused. I would suggest neither. Concerned or Confused.
But no one here can give you medical advice. No one on the planet can tell you what in vaping is "safe". You choose whether it concerns you or not.
I can tell you in very quick terms what is in that thread: worse than nothing. Confusion. Don't waste any time on it.
What you have is a person who tries to "do something" with some OSHA numbers. Except that person is not a person, he/she it is in fact a vendor. With an agenda. Not concerning your health. What this person tries to do with those numbers is not valid. No one really knows if the numbers even mean anything. Example, there are similar numbers for formaldehyde. The numbers came from mice. Formaldehyde is a proven carcinogen - for mice. Over the decades the mechanism was determined, it was applicable to mice, also shown to be NOT applicable to humans. Over the decades formaldehyde, although definitely not good for you, has never been firmly linked to cancer in humans. The numbers are still there, in fact they got lowered. Not based on evidence.
Diacetyl is also certainly not good for you. But "popcorn lung" is rare. This in people who handled 55 gallons drums of the stuff over long periods of time. Rare. What you have is a bunch of people freaking out, a vendor egging them on, and numbers that are uncertain, and certainly cannot be used as they were in that thread. Both the thread and the vendor should have been removed, presumably both are still here.
End of story. The thread. Confusion. Don't read the thread, look at websites and labelling. It's not confusing.
Reality: Concern.
No one can tell you what is safe. Not me not them not TPA. TPA sells several tobacco flavors largely based on Tabanon, as are most "DK-Tab" flavors. It is a registered insecticide or herbicide, I can't recall, and presumed somewhat possibly mutagenic.
The Diacetyl thing was likely exaggerated all along, now it is old news and largely historic. What you may still find is either flavors that may or may not have some diacetyl, or more commonly other custard notes that may or may not release some diacetyl like acetoin, or flavors that are labelled by most reasonably reputable sources - FA, TFA/TPA, ECX - as having Diacetyl and/or "Custard Notes". These are usually but not always reliable, I have some flavors that mention neither and I can taste diketone in them.
Does it concern me? Not a bit. I vape those flavors everyday. Clouds. No one can speak for another. But some questions:
1) Are you currently combusting tobacco or have you in the past addictively?
2) Are you one of the many people like me who is no longer smoking but benefits from nicotine and is satisfied with the health profile and effect of vaping it?
If you cannot answer yes to one or both, and you are concerned about your health, then it is simple, don't vape. It is IMO not exactly very harmful, but it is certainly not good for you.
If you are actively smoking then worrying about diketones in vapor is actually a little absurd. If you are one of us who needs/wants some psychoactive effect of nicotine then you value quality more than quantity and mental health not physical health is always priority.
Ergo I feel no concern.
A lotta people use this "reasoning": I still smoke, I don't want to make my health any worse.
Uhmm if you still smoke, don't be concerned, I'm pretty sure you can't get there from here. Think it through: "I smoke, therefore I spend time and concern about the possibilities of vaping exposing me to diketones which in isolated cases after considerable exposure have been shown to have an adverse health effect". Ever meet anyone who had even heard of popcorn lung outside of this interest? Want to know how many people I've known myself or have somehow been even remotely known to me that have died of cancer attributable to cigarettes? Having lungs removed is a pretty damn adverse health outcome and I've personally known more than a handful of people who have been there. They are not around anymore.
I still smoked for decades. Not to mention working around a lot of benzene, ....loads of acetylacetone ( a very reactive diketone) and lots worse. It'll all kill me one day, I may not make it that far. Same as everyone, if you live long enough eventually you die of cancer. It's just a matter of of if and when, there is only one way to avoid it - die of something else first.
If you are worried about diketones, all the vendors I mentioned label most of their offerings that have even custard notes. Just avoid those flavors. 4-Hydroxy-3-methoxybenzaldehyde does not exactly sound healthy either, and it is not, but we practically all vape it regularly and eat it too. But if that bowl of vanilla ice cream worries you, I would suggest thinking about the calories not the health effects of vanillin.
I was a dual user for about a year then I smoked my last cigarette. It was not that long ago really. Look at my tagline. That would have been 15,000 more cigarettes! I don't personally give a rat.... if there are diketones in my vape. I vape on.
Don't let the internet fool you into thinking information is the same as knowledge. Knowledge about this behavior is not currently available. Some information that is out there indicates little real concern yet. Some is unfavorable. Some is dated/highly sensationalized. No one can tell you what is safe. The unknown is unknown. Some concern themselves with the unknown, others don't. The unknown should never be a source of confusion though ...
