Secondhand Vapor?

[PowerfulDot]

I've been wondering about this and haven't found an answer yet, forgive me if this is a repeat question.

Are there any studies of what is exhaled in vapor, specifically nicotine? I'd like to be able to answer any layman's question about this, so I can show that I know that there's nothing in in secondhand "e-smoke" that could hurt anyone. My guess would be that the nicotine is mostly absorbed into the lungs, so what comes out is mostly just PG and water vapor.

Thanks!
Dot

 

[Walrus]

I've been wondering about this and haven't found an answer yet, forgive me if this is a repeat question.

Are there any studies of what is exhaled in vapor, specifically nicotine? I'd like to be able to answer any layman's question about this, so I can show that I know that there's nothing in in secondhand "e-smoke" that could hurt anyone. My guess would be that the nicotine is mostly absorbed into the lungs, so what comes out is mostly just PG and water vapor.

Thanks!
Dot

I don't think there are. There's bound to be some nicotine left in the vapor. Bottom line is we can't make that statement about second-hand vapor any more than we can say it about first-hand. We just don't know.

 

[PowerfulDot]

Nevermind! I found my own answer, from the news story in NewScientist in the News forum.

What my fellow patrons at the bar were most concerned about as I puffed away next to them was passive smoking. Although the e-cigarette does not produce carbon monoxide or the carcinogens that are the by-products of combustion, as Laugesen notes, its cartridge contains acetaldehyde. The chemical is best known for its part in causing hangovers, and when allowed to build up in the body can be carcinogenic. "The small amounts found [in each cartridge - 5 parts per million] may be coming from the ethyl alcohol found in the cartridge liquid," he says. If acetaldehyde is present in the mist, however, it is unlikely to cause harm as low levels can rapidly be broken down in the body.

Inhaled nicotine is over 98 per cent absorbed, and any exhaled PG mist dissipates within seconds, so Laugesen concluded that the mist is not harmful to bystanders.

Dot

 

[omad84]

People are so precious these days, I was born in the wrong time!