E-Cigarettes

Summary

E-cigarettes, or electronic cigarettes, are battery-operated smoking devices. They often look like cigarettes, but work differently. Using an e-cigarette is called vaping. The user puffs on the mouthpiece of a cartridge. This causes a vaporizer to heat the liquid inside the cartridge. The liquid contains nicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals. The heated liquid turns into the vapor that is inhaled.

Some people think that e-cigarettes are safer than cigarettes, and that they can be used to help people quit smoking. But not much is known about the health risks of using them, or whether they do help people quit smoking. However we do know about some dangers of e-cigarettes:

• They contain nicotine, which is addictive
• They contain other potentially harmful chemicals
• There is a link between e-cigarette use and tobacco cigarette use in teens
• The liquid in e-cigarettes can cause nicotine poisoning if someone drinks, sniffs, or touches it

NIH: National Institute on Drug Abuse

National Institute on Drug Abuse

Learn More

• Beware of Vaping Products with Unproven Health Claims Food and Drug Administration
• E-cigarettes and E-hookahs Medical Encyclopedia
• E-Cigarettes and Pregnancy Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• E-Cigs, Menthol, and Dip National Cancer Institute, Tobacco Control Research Branch
• Electronic Cigarettes Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• How to Properly Store E-Liquids and Prevent Accidental Exposure of E-Liquids to Children Food and Drug Administration
• Quick Facts on the Risks of E-Cigarettes for Kids, Teens, and Young Adults Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Risks of Vaping: A Look at Safety National Institutes of Health
• Secondhand Smoke and Electronic-Cigarette Aerosols Environmental Protection Agency
• Vaping Devices (Electronic Cigarettes) DrugFacts National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Vaping: What Parents Should Know Nemours Foundation
• Vaping: What You Need to Know Nemours Foundation

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems National Institutes of Health

Journal Articles

• E-Cigarettes

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

• Tips for Talking to Your Teen about Vaping
• Under the Influence: NIH Research Shows Teen Vaping, Social Pressure on the Rise