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Environmental health hazards of e-cigarettes and their components: Oxidants and copper in e-cigarette aerosols

2015; Elsevier BV; Volume: 198; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.envpol.2014.12.033

1873-6424

Chad A. Lerner, Isaac K. Sundar, Richard M. Watson, Alison Elder, Ryan Jones, Douglas Done, Rachel Kurtzman, Deborah J. Ossip, Risa J. Robinson, Scott McIntosh, Irfan Rahman,

Smoking Behavior and Cessation

To narrow the gap in our understanding of potential oxidative properties associated with Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) i.e. e-cigarettes, we employed semi-quantitative methods to detect oxidant reactivity in disposable components of ENDS/e-cigarettes (batteries and cartomizers) using a fluorescein indicator. These components exhibit oxidants/reactive oxygen species reactivity similar to used conventional cigarette filters. Oxidants/reactive oxygen species reactivity in e-cigarette aerosols was also similar to oxidant reactivity in cigarette smoke. A cascade particle impactor allowed sieving of a range of particle size distributions between 0.450 and 2.02 μm in aerosols from an e-cigarette. Copper, being among these particles, is 6.1 times higher per puff than reported previously for conventional cigarette smoke. The detection of a potentially cytotoxic metal as well as oxidants from e-cigarette and its components raises concern regarding the safety of e-cigarettes use and the disposal of e-cigarette waste products into the environment.