The Potential Hazards of E-Cigarette and Dual Use: a Cochrane Systematic Review and Secondary Analysis

Title: Biomarkers of potential harm from switching from tobacco smoking to e-cigarette use, dual use or cessation: a Cochrane systematic review and meta-analysis of secondary analysis of data from randomized controlled trials of electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation. In this study, researchers conducted a secondary analysis of data from randomized controlled trials of electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation in Greece, Italy, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The conclusion drawn was that switching from tobacco smoking to e-cigarette use significantly lowered potential harmful biomarkers.

At the same time, according to a recent study published in the American Heart Association journal "Circulation," using both traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes poses the same risk to the heart as smoking alone.

A study titled "Association Between Patterns of Cigarette and E-Cigarette Use and Inflammatory and Oxidative Stress Biomarker Levels in U.S. Adults: A Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study" analyzed more than 7,100 U.S. adults aged 18 and over to explore the connection between smoking, vaping, and heart health.

Researchers used data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) study to search for biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress, as these biomarkers are known to indicate predictive factors for heart disease and cardiovascular events, such as heart attacks and heart failure.

After analyzing five biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress, participants were divided into four groups: exclusive smokers, exclusive e-cigarette users, dual users, and non-users of e-cigarettes. Researchers listed the following findings:

Participants who only use electronic cigarettes showed similar levels of inflammation and oxidative stress as those who do not use electronic cigarettes or smoke at all. However, compared to participants who do not use cigarettes or electronic cigarettes, those who smoke exclusively or use both cigarettes and electronic cigarettes had higher levels of all evaluated biomarkers. Participants who only use electronic cigarettes had significantly lower levels of nearly all inflammation and oxidative stress biomarkers compared to those who only smoke. However, participants who use both cigarettes and electronic cigarettes had biomarker levels similar to those who exclusively smoke. 2FIRSTS will continue to report on this issue, with updates available on the "2FIRSTSAPP". Scan the QR code below to download the app.