Vaping as harmful for heart as cigarette smoking

Vaping may be just as harmful as traditional smoking, say scientists who found that e-cigarettes may cause significant impact on vascular functions.

The research, published in the journal Vascular Medicine, brought new to light on the significant health risks of e-cigarettes with nicotine.

The study showed that smokers of e-cigarettes experienced the same, if not higher level of cardiovascular elevation for prolonged periods after smoking the e-cigarette.

Researchers from University Hospital Schleswig-Holstein in Germany monitored participant's vitals during and after they had smoked a cigarette, e-cigarette, or nicotine-free e-cigarette.

The smoking lasted for one cigarette, at least 5 minutes, and the vaping lasted for one session for 5 minutes. Vitals were monitored for 2 hours from when smoking commenced.

Researchers found that using e-cigarettes and cigarettes, in comparison to nicotine-free e-cigarettes, had the same significant impact on vitals, with participant's blood pressure and heart rate being affected.

Peripheral systolic blood pressure was raised significantly for 45 minutes after using an e-cigarette and 15 minutes after smoking a cigarette. Heart rate also remained elevated for 45 minutes for e-cigarettes, with the increase being higher than 8 per cent for the first 30 minutes.

In comparison, traditional cigarettes only raised heart rate for 30 minutes and there was again no change when using nicotine-free e-cigarettes.

Researchers said that the e-cigarettes can be as dangerous as cigarettes.

"The increased parameters within the nicotine containing devices might be a link to an increased cardiovascular risk which is well known for cigarettes," they said.

"Future trials should focus on chronic effects of vaping nicotine-containing or nicotine free liquids on peripheral and central blood pressures as well as on arterial stiffness," researchers said.