If there is a time to stop vaping, it’s fine now.
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The use of electronic cigarettes, which involves inhaling a mixture of flavors, nicotine and chemicals and then exhaling it into a fine vapor, is never without risk – even less during the coronavirus pandemic.
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COVID-19 attacks the lungs. Once the infection reaches your nose or throat, it slowly travels to the airways, triggering inflammation along the way.
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To be able to overcome the infection quickly, your lungs must be in perfect condition to fight it properly. Vaping damages the lungs and weakens the immune system, making it much more difficult for the body to recover from COVID-19.
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Research on the long-term health effects of vaping is still limited. But considering what we know about smoking, COVID-19, and other respiratory infections, health experts say with confidence that vaping not only increases your risk of developing complications from the coronavirus, but also pass it on to others. In fact, some states in the United States even issue specific health advisories on vaping and COVID-19.
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Here are some of the worrying effects vaping can have when it comes to coronavirus:
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Vaping increases your risk of infection
The most obvious problem with vaping is the harm it causes to the lungs.
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When you vape, you take in harsh chemicals that immediately damage cells in your respiratory system that are responsible for governing the immune system. This is the body’s first line of defense to eliminate respiratory diseases like COVID-19, says Alexa Mieses, a family doctor from Durham, North Carolina, and assistant professor of family medicine at the faculty of University of North Carolina medicine.
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“Almost immediately your immune system is” distracted “by the damage vaping inflicts on your lungs,” says Mieses, adding that it becomes much more difficult for your body to fight off a pathogen like coronavirus.
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Because vaping suppresses the immune response in the lungs, it increases the severity and duration of other respiratory infections like bronchitis, flu (influenza) and pneumonia, according to Robert Jackler, chair of the otolaryngology department of Stanford Medicine.
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Vaping “could delay healing, as seen in smokers who have a dry cough after flu or other coronaviruses and a cold that lodges in their chest,” said Jackler.
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Although we are still learning how vaping can affect the risk of getting COVID-19, health experts suspect the disease follows a pattern similar to other respiratory infections.
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Vaping affects the lungs’ ability to get oxygen
COVID-19 causes inflammation and swelling of the lungs, making it more difficult to absorb oxygen. (Jackler says the infection can decrease this lung capacity by about 50%).
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A healthy person can use supplemental oxygen and survive the infection. But if your lungs are already weakened by smoking or vaping, they have a harder time getting oxygen. Add COVID-19 to this mixture and your body will find it even more difficult to get enough oxygen.
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“Lung reserve – your ability to resist deterioration of the lungs – is greatly influenced by your smoking history [et de vapotage]Says Jackler.
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Vapor clouds can spread the virus
When a person is vaping, they breathe in and the vapor plume mixes with secretions from the lungs, throat and nose. Then she exhales it.
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“There are two things in the cloud – there are droplets from the vaping machine, but they are also contaminated with secretions from inside your lungs, which can be rich in viruses,” says Jackler.
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Here’s the worrying element in all of this. The coronavirus is mainly spread through the respiratory droplets that are expelled when people talk, cough, or sneeze. The respiratory droplets are large enough for gravity to pull them down, so they don’t stay in the air long.
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The aerosols that are released into a vapor cloud, however, are so tiny that they are able to cling in the air.
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“If someone has just used a vaping machine in a small room, especially a high-powered device, their own pulmonary secretions can be suspended in the air for minutes or even hours after vaping,” notes M. Jackler.
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If the vaper had COVID-19 and released enough vapor to the air containing these tiny contaminated aerosols, another person could theoretically contract the virus by simply entering the room soon after. The process is similar to how health workers can catch the virus in the air, due to the medical procedures they may have to perform on patients.
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You touch your face again and again
The act of vaping itself inherently poses a major risk of contracting the virus.
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You hold something in your hands and then put it in your mouth repeatedly – this is exactly what the authorities are asking to avoid.
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“Unless you diligently wash your hands before taking this vape and clean it cleanly, these are exactly the kinds of things that can implant the virus in your mouth and lead to infection,” says M Jackler.
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Another major concern of Mr. Jackler is that vaping is essentially a social activity for young people. Adolescents tend not to vape alone, but in a group.
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“They often share the device, circulate it, and of course it poses a risk of transmitting a COVID infection,” says Jackler.
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Even though it is believed that younger people have an easier time recovering from COVID-19, they can still be seriously ill – especially if their lungs are already damaged by vaping. And even if some younger vapers show milder symptoms, it is perhaps “so-called silent spreaders” that accelerate the spread of COVID-19 at an alarming rate.
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Stop, ask the experts
There are immediate benefits to stopping vaping, so the sooner you repack your device, the better you will feel if you get COVID-19.
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If you are addicted to vaping, contact your doctor to discuss your options. Gum, toothpicks and candy can be viable substitutes. If you’re addicted to nicotine, Jackler recommends trying a nicotine replacement like lozenges, gums, or patches, which don’t involve inhaling chemicals or constantly touching your mouth . This will help reduce your risk of infection and also boost the immune function of your lungs.
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“Stop vaping yesterday,” says Mieses. “Vaping and smoking do not help a person when fighting a respiratory infection” like COVID-19.
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This text originally published on the HuffPost United States was translated from English.
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