It should be no surprise that smoking is killer on your looks – but what about vaping? The risks of the supposedly safer option might surprise you. 

We’ve known for almost a century now that smoking is bad for your health and killer on your looks – but what about vaping? The risks to your skin and why will likely surprise you. Image by master1305 for Freepik.

It should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone that smoking is devastating on both your overall health and looks. Smoking is carcinogenic (meaning it absolutely causes multiple types of cancer), contributes to heart and cardiovascular disease, destroys your lungs, takes years of your life and – as if that all wasn’t enough – it ruins your skin and teeth. 

But what about vaping? There’s been an uptick in vaping as people trying to kick their tobacco habits, and viewing vaping as a safer, gentler option to get their nicotine fix, much like nicotine gum and patches. But there’s also been an onboarding of new users in the nicotine space, from teens and young people who view vaping as a ‘safe low risk way’ to try nicotine (as well as THC and CBD) to see what it’s all about (which also explains many of the flavour choices available in cartridges – bubble gum, candy, etc.).

 

But Vaping is Safe for My Health, Right?

The logic behind vaping being a safer alternative to smoking on the surface makes sense. Technically, there’s no ‘smoke’, as nicotine or THC extracts contained in a cartridge are ‘vaporized’ or ‘aerosolized’ by a battery-operated device and then inhaled. 

No fire, no tobacco chemicals, no bad smoke – must be better, right? Kind of like one of those asthma nebulizers. 

 

That couldn’t be further from the truth. Worse, I see that a lot of vapers out there are unaware of the risks. 

It’s in the details, right? No smoke, no problem! A lot of the younger set is convinced vaping is the friendlier, healthier version of smoking – like an asthma nebulizer but for nicotine! And vaping companies are keen to keep up that false and dangerous narrative. Image by prostooleh for Freepik.

First off, the vapour that vaping devices produce is not a therapeutic mist. It’s a combination of typically more than 30 chemicals, including ones with an oily base. These compounds, when vaporized and inhaled, can have a devastating effect on your sensitive lung tissue. 

Simply put, these vaping solutions are made up of compounds that have no business coming into contact with your delicate airways. These chemicals coat your lungs and can trigger inflammation, so much so that there are three specific lung diseases found almost exclusively in vapers:

• Popcorn Lung: A type of bronchiolitis caused by the flavouring agent diacetyl (used in microwave popcorn and e-cigarettes to simulate butter) and named for popcorn factory workers that first came down with the disease. There is no treatment. 
• E-cigarette and vaping associated lung injury (EVALI): caused by vitamin E acetate, a synthetic form of vitamin E found in some vape solutions that triggers a serious inflammatory response in the lungs. There is no good treatment. 
• Vaping Related Lipoid Pneumonia: Caused by fatty acids used in cartridges which triggers a difficult to treat pneumonia. There is no good treatment. 

 

All three of these diseases make it difficult to breathe and are hard to treat. Sure, vaping doesn’t cause the smoker’s black lungs we saw touted through elementary school in preservation jars, but don’t let yourself think for a moment that means it’s not risky. Vaping can land you in the hospital. 

 

What does this have to do with aesthetics and your appearance? Damaging your lungs will categorically affect how you look – you need oxygen for every organ in your body to work, including your skin. The lungs are the only way to get it.  

 

It Gets Even Worse for Your Skin, Care of Nicotine…

Some of the telltale hallmarks of smoking – nicotine stains (yellowing skin, teeth, and nails), dry, sagging, and uneven skin, eye bags and wrinkles – can age you by upwards of three decades. There’s so much data on how smoking affects the body that researchers have developed software that can accurately show what you would look like as a smoker – and if you weren’t. 

Though we’ve known smoking was bad for a very long time, the exact mechanism for how smoking led to wrinkles, bags, and sagging – all signs of collagen damage – were elusive. We knew collagen was getting damaged at a higher rate in smokers, but not exactly why. Free radicals and smoking taking a toll on the body didn’t quite cover it.  

Recently researchers have gained insight into what exactly in smoking damages collagen so much, and it’s not good news for vapers – nicotine. 

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Nicotine is a highly addictive drug. It causes the release of dopamine in our brains, leading to the feel-good vibes smokers and vapers seek. But nicotine receptors aren’t just found in your brain – they’re also found in your skin, keratinocytes, and fibroblasts – the cells responsible for making collagen and elastin. When nicotine binds to receptors in these two cell types, it decreases the amount of collagen and elastin being made – not good for your skin. It also causes the increase in metalloproteases, meaning more collagen is being degraded, also bad. It’s a two-fold hit to the collagen, which explains why smokers have so many signs of collagen damage. 

Vaping nicotine can also lead to this damage. Yes, vape-face is a real thing. 

We know how much people love natural, plant-based products – but this is one that belongs nowhere near your skin. Tobacco plants and their nicotine don’t belong in skincare and certainly not in your lungs. Image by jcomp for Freepik.

Nicotine is also a vasoconstrictor, meaning it can reduce blood flow making it more difficult for the body to heal wounds, making vapers potentially more prone to scarring. It also makes people who vape nicotine poor candidates for surgery, dental implants, and even hair transplants. 

In the more bad news category, second hand vaping could be problematic, since nicotine can enter the body a multitude of ways – lungs, through the skin, through clothes…

Did I mention erectile dysfunction yet? As a hair transplant surgeon, I find it fascinating how concerned men are over this side effect from hair loss medication, yet we don’t talk about sexual side effects with regards to vaping and smoking. 

Not pretty on any level. 

 

Silver Linings

I don’t want to discourage anyone from quitting smoking. Nicotine is highly addictive, and it can be impossible to quit without the use of a nicotine substitute – like gum, patches, or vaping. 

But I also really think we need to have better communication about the problems nicotine poses and the fact that vaping isn’t safe. Are there different risks from smoking? Certainly, but far from safe. 

The fantastic news is that if you vape or smoke and quit now, you start to reap the benefits immediately. The body is an amazing thing, and when you remove the effects of nicotine and the onslaught on your lungs, your health and skin start to recover on day one. 

Not many health tips tout that kind of success rate. It beats any procedure or product you can buy off the shelf – and that’s a promise. 

If you aren’t a smoker? Because nicotine is so absorbable from our environment, it’s good to take steps to limit your exposure. 

• Understand that second hand nicotine from smokers or vapers does pose a health risk to your lungs and skin. 
• If you have friends or family who vape indoors, try explaining your concerns over nicotine exposure. 
• If you find yourself outside with friends who vape frequently and are unwilling to curb their activity (nicotine is highly addictive), try to stay away from the vapour – it’s not great for your skin or lungs. 
• If you’re in an environment where people have been vaping, launder your clothing when you get home to remove residual nicotine. 

If you’re in the process of quitting smoking, remember to be gentle on your skin and hair. For products backed by science, designed to work gently on your skin, and support hair growth, visit Feelconfident.com. 

The content of this newsletter is for entertainment and educational purposes only. This content is not meant to provide any medical advice or treat any medical conditions. Patients must be evaluated by an appropriate healthcare provider on an individual basis and treatment must be tailored to meet that patient’s needs. Results and particular outcomes are not guaranteed.