Scent enhanced vaping products that come in a variety of enticing flavors, such as pineapple, bubblegum, and blue raspberry may account for the nose-exhaling technique. This type of practice is also called retro haling.
Past studies have suggested that these vaping products along with hookah water pipes expose the respiratory system to higher levels of nicotine, carbon monoxide, and other toxic chemicals than traditional cigarettes. However, their long-term health effects are poorly understood.
Based on this fact, this new study examines the exhalation patterns in e-cigarette and hookah pipe users outside of a controlled laboratory setting.
Researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine observed 122 cigarette smokers and 123 vapers walking on the streets of New York City between March 2018 and February 2019. They also monitored 96 people smoking inside two Manhattan hookah bars.
They noted whether each smoker or vaper exhaled through their nose, mouth, or both. For vapers, they also recorded whether a pod-style (such as a vape pen) or modular tank-style vaping device was used.
The results showed that more than 70% of those who used pod-like devices exhaled through their nose at some point during the observation period, while 50% of modular-tank style users did the same.
One possible explanation for this trend is that the latter devices produce far more particles with each puff than the former. As a result, tank users may find their puffs simply too large to exhale through the nose alone.
“Because vaping and hookah devices are used differently than traditional cigarettes, we need to consider diseases of both the nose and lungs to evaluate their safety before judging whether one is riskier than another,” says study senior author Terry Gordon, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Environmental Medicine at NYU Langone.
Later, researchers identified increased damage in the nasal passages of vapers and hookah users but not in cigarette smokers, lending to concern.
They found as many as 10 times the levels of inflammatory compounds released by defense cells in the noses of the former group than in the latter.
However, researchers still need to determine whether this nasal damage seen in vapers is truly a result of their unique breathing pattern and not due to an unrelated issue.
Source: Medindia
