Immune System Suppressions
A new study published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine found that e-cigarettes made up of nicotine salts had immune suppression effects on users. Although the long-term health implications of these immune suppressions are yet to be investigated, this should make e-cigarette users worried.
This new study was commissioned by the National Institute of Health and conducted by a team of experts from the UNC School of Medicine. The team had set out to investigate the health impacts of different “fourth-generation” vapers on users. These are popular modern vaping devices such as Juul products.
To complete its investigation the team of medical scientists collected samples from four distinct groups. These groups were: fourth-generation vaping product users, third-generation vaping product users, cigarette smokers, and non-smokers. Several inflammatory biomarkers were then measured from each sputum sample.
The study found that samples from fourth-generation e-cigarette users contained unusually high levels of bronchial epithelial cells. These cells are often found in samples from people with airway injury and are not associated with tobacco use.
The study also found that samples from fourth-generation vaper users contained low levels of a wide range of immune cells such as VEGF, MMP-2, MCP-1, CRP, and uteroglobin among others. This was the lowest level among all the samples. This indicated that fourth-generation vaping devices played a role in suppressing the immune system of the users.
According to Elise Hickman the lead researcher, when examining the samples as a whole, those from fought generation e-cigarette users had the most profound change when compared to the other test groups. This indicated a major shift in the immune homeostasis of this group when compared to other groups in the study.
The researchers were quick to note that their findings did not link then immune suppressions to any particular health problem. It is therefore important for members of the public to note that while fourth-generation e-cigarette use was found to impact the body’s immune system the study could not associate the use of those devices with any particular disease such as emphysema or cancer.
This does not mean that future studies may not find the link. However, the current study was only interested in finding out the impact of using e-cigarettes products on the body’s immune system. The finds were particular that while other e-cigarettes and tobacco products did not have a significant impact on the immune system, the fourth-generation e-cigarettes did. The long-term health effects of these are still not unknown.
Ilona Jaspers, one of the researchers on the team that did the research explains that “it’s impossible to know if vaping decreases cancer risk or many other long-term conditions.” This is particularly because it takes time to find an association between a product and a given disease. For example, it took over 60 years of studies to determine that smocking tobacco products cause cancer.  Still, many studies will be needed to find the link between the immune suppression found in this study with any known disease. Researchers believe more studies are needed on e-cigarette products to better inform the public of their dangers.
