VAPING-A HEALTH EMERGENCY?

A new study suggests long-term risks of using vapes could be as bad as smoking as schools report pupils getting addicted and users complain about difficulties of stopping. Stephen Topping investigates its impact

-  Stephen Topping

ON high streets and at bus stops, in beer gardens and outside schools, thick plumes of steam can often be seen swirling around the air.

While the number of smokers in the UK has fallen to the lowest level since records began, vaping is on the rise. Millions of people across the country are using e-cigarettes.

According to the latest figures from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH), 5.6 million adults in Britain vape. They include three million former smokers and 2.2 million current smokers.

In the last two decades, e-cigarettes have been used as a tool to quit smoking. Those who have made the switch have reduced their exposure to toxins which have known risks of cancer, lung and heart disease, and stroke.

But experts say the long-term health risks of vaping are still unknown. Chief medical officer, Prof Sir Chris Whitty, has previously summed the situation up as: “If you don't smoke, don't vape.”

A Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) study could soon give the reason why.

Dr Maxime Boidin, leader of the world's first controlled study into vaping's long-term effects at MMU, believes the country could be on the verge of a 'health emergency' unless vapes are restricted to those quitting smoking.

The study, which concludes this month, has so far found both smokers and vapers with damaged artery walls that can no longer dilate, and blood flow impaired.

Dr Boidin believes this is due to nicotine, plus the metals and chemicals found in vapes, and that this could put vapers at risk of developing cognitive dysfunction - including dementia.

The Manchester Evening News has spoken to people who are hooked on vapes, as well as a head-teacher and charity boss about the growing problem. Here they discuss what needs to change.

'I FEEL LIKE I HAVEN'T ACHIEVED ANYTHING'

Suzie Michelle, 44, smoked for around 12 years before switching to vaping a year ago following a loved one's health scare.