Adolescent Exposure to Toxic Volatile Organic Chemicals From E-Cigarettes

BACKGROUND: There is an urgent need to understand the safety of e-cigarettes with adolescents. We sought to identify the presence of chemical toxicants associated with e-cigarette use among adolescents. METHODS: = 20). Saliva was collected within 24 hours of the last e-cigarette use for analysis of cotinine and urine for analysis of NNAL and levels of 8 volatile organic chemical compounds. Bivariate analyses compared e-cigarette-only users with dual users, and regression analyses compared e-cigarette-only users with dual users and controls on levels of toxicants. RESULTS: < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Although e-cigarette vapor may be less hazardous than tobacco smoke, our findings can be used to challenge the idea that e-cigarette vapor is safe, because many of the volatile organic compounds we identified are carcinogenic. Messaging to teenagers should include warnings about the potential risk from toxic exposure to carcinogenic compounds generated by these products.