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Vaping Could Help Prevent Ex-Smokers Piling on the Pounds, Research Suggests

  • October 27, 2016

As reported by The Guardian, a new study suggests that nicotine-containing e-cigarettes could help prevent weight gain — a major concern of people wanting to quit smoking regular cigarettes. Called “vaping,” the ideal way of doing this would be to gradually reduce the amount of nicotine in the e-cigarettes until they can quit altogether, study authors said. Sweet and fruit-flavored e-liquids may also help vaping smokers to eat less, they added.

While the authors cautioned they are not promoting e-cigarettes or nicotine, their message is mixed, at best, especially since other studies show that vaping is as bad for you as smoking regular cigarettes. The fact is, no matter what your weight, while you may believe e-cigarettes are healthier, you're really just trading one serious health risk for another.

And, lest you think vaping’s secondhand smoke is safer, think again: E-cigarettes were found to emit higher levels of certain metals than regular cigarettes, including tin, copper, nickel and silver. Secondhand e-cigarette aerosol also contains at least 10 chemicals identified on California's Proposition 65 list of carcinogens and reproductive toxins.

As far as being flavored, there are nearly 8,000 flavors of e-cigarettes, many of which are based on fruit, candy, or alcoholic-drink flavors — and targeted at young people, who the American Heart Association fears will use as a gateway to other addictions.

What’s worse, increased poisonings from e-cigarettes are already being reported. The best thing to do if you’re giving up smoking is to follow a good nutrition plan, develop a well-rounded exercise program and find healthy emotional outlets that can help you keep your mind off both cigarettes and overeating as you embark on your withdrawal program.