'I've studied effects of vaping - heart disease, organ failure and dementia'

Daily Mirror

6 days ago

Dr Maxime Boidin has just concluded the world's first controlled study into the long-term effects of vaping at Manchester Metropolitan University, and says Britain is sleepwalking into a "health emergency" after seeing for himself the damage e-cigs are doing to vapers' bodies
The expert leading the world's first controlled study into the long-term effects of vaping says he's pleased the government has banned single-use vapes - but says much more needs to be done to avert a looming " health emergency".
Dr Maxime Boidin, Senior Lecturer in Cardiac Rehab at Manchester Metropolitan University, has spent the last two years monitoring a group of vapers, comparing their health to groups of non-vapers and cigarette smokers.
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And he says he has been shocked at the damage he's seen in vapers' arteries - an almost certain sign of future serious cardiovascular problems and even organ failure. He concludes that vaping may be more dangerous to the body than cigarettes - putting long-term users at risk of serious illness, including dementia and heart disease.
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Dr Boidin, who will present the findings of his two-year study at Manchester Metropolitan University at a sport science conference in Rimini, Italy, in July, said the ban on disposable vapes which comes into effect tomorrow is a "step in the right direction" - but believes all vapes should be banned rom shops and only available on prescription.
He told the Mirror: "These products primarily target younger individuals, whereas older adults tend to use refillable options. From a health perspective, the ban should reduce access among the younger population, as refillable vapes are generally more expensive and less accessible.
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"From an environmental standpoint, we frequently see single-use vapes - and their packaging - littering pavements..
"In the end, the ban is a step in the right direction, but it represents only a small part of the broader educational and cultural change that's needed."
The move to outlaw disposable vapes follows mounting concern over the rise in teen vaping. Starting from tomorrow, it will be illegal for businesses in the UK to sell or supply the vapes, regardless of whether they contain nicotine, and covers both in-store and online sales..
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Inhaling nicotine vapour from E-cigarettes has been described by the NHS as 'substantially less harmful than smoking' and is considered a safer way for people to give up smoking
But Dr Boidin believes the health threat to vapers is even worse, because of how much harder it is to control.
He adds: 'Smokers tend to go outside and smoke, and once a cigarette is finished they have to light up another to keep going. But with vapes, you just keep going and it's much harder to know how many puffs you've had. It's much easier to vape continuously because you can do it in places where smoking might be less acceptable.'
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Monitoring the health of different groups of volunteers, he was shocked to find that the arteries in both vapers and smokers suffer similar levels of damage - a sign of future cardiovascular problems as arteries narrow restricting the flow of blood to vital organs.
During the study at the university's Institute of Sport, participants - aged between 18 to 45, with an average age of 27 and similar levels of fitness and physical activity - were given regular stress tests to measure the elasticity of their blood vessels and the speed of blood flow to their brains.
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For 12 hours prior to testing, they consumed only water and desisted from vaping, smoking and exercise. According to Dr Boidin, the mediated dilation (FMD) test, in which a cuff is placed on the participant's arm and inflated to restrict the blood flow, before being released to measure how much the artery expands as more blood is passed through it, produced the starkest results.
In both smokers and vapers the test achieved a flat reading, signalling damaged artery walls that can no longer dilate - an almost certain sign of future serious cardiovascular problems. Further tests proved that the blood flow in smokers and vapers is similarly impaired, making them at risk of developing cognitive dysfunction, including dementia.
Dr Boidin, senior lecturer in cardiac rehabilitation, believes the damage is due to inflammation caused by nicotine, as well as the metals and chemicals found in vapes, which include propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine. Substances in the chemical flavourings such as carbonyl compound are known to cause inflammation and oxidative stress, which can lead to artery inner wall damage and cell death. He says: 'When you put this mixture of metals and chemicals into your body you can't expect nothing to happen.'
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Shocked by his own findings, he adds: 'What we have found is the dangers for someone who keeps vaping are no different from smokers.
'At the beginning (of the study) I also believed that vaping was more beneficial than smoking. You see a lot more people vaping these days because they don't think it's too bad. Many will be horrified to know the truth.'
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Vaping use in the UK has exploded since the first electronic cigarettes arrived here in 2005. There are now 5.1million people aged 16 or over in Britain - about one in ten - using vapes, according to figures last year from the Office for National Statistics. Vaping rates were highest among those aged 16 to 24, at 15.8%.
One million people in England now vape, despite never having been regular smokers, a seven-fold increase in three years, according to a University College London study published in The Lancet Public Health Journal. And, despite recent vaping scares, like the death this year of Hollyoaks star Paul Danan, aged 46, who months earlier revealed he'd had to be revived after suffering respiratory failure caused by excessive vaping, Public Health England is still advising that 'vaping poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking'.
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Many will have been convinced that taking up vaping won't be prejudicial to their health, thanks to oft-repeated advice including from Public Health England which states that 'vaping poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking'. The agency, however, admits that 'evidence is mostly limited to short and medium term effects and studies assessing longer term vaping are necessary.'
That advice has not changed despite recent scares, including the tragic death this year of Hollyoaks star Paul Danan, aged 46, who months earlier revealed how he had to be revived after suffering respiratory failure caused by excessive vaping.
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Other shocking cases have emerged of collapsed lungs, fainting or vomiting ominous green liquid, linked to heavy vaping. Dr Boidin says he also has evidence that vaping impairs people's levels of fitness, even in young vapers.
He believes vaping can actually be more dangerous than smoking because it's much harder to know when to stop. 'Smokers tend to go outside and smoke, and once a cigarette is finished they have to light up another to keep going. But with vapes you just keep going and it's much harder to know how many puffs you've had.
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But Dr Boidin says all vapes should only be available on prescription in Britain, to avoid a 'health emergency.' He says: 'The only benefit of vaping is to help people quit smoking, but if they keep vaping the result is going to be the same. I think doctors should be able to prescribe vapes for a certain time, so they could be used as a transition tool, but only for a short time.
'We now know the long-term effects of vaping, and if we don't act now we will see a health emergency in the next ten, 15 years.' Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York Central who has called for tighter restrictions on vapes, says: 'This study adds to the body of evidence that vaping can cause significant harm to a person. The government should take stricter measures in ensuring that vapes are only accessible to people who currently smoke as a smoking cessation intervention.'
But Dr Marina Murphy, scientific spokesperson for the UK Vaping Industry Association, dismissed the study's findings, saying: 'Millions of people have been using vaping products safely for many years. All the available data suggests that vapes are unlikely to exceed 5% of the health risks associated with cigarettes.'