Tag: junk science

  • Study: Vapes Nearly Halve Prediabetes Risks of Smoking

    Study: Vapes Nearly Halve Prediabetes Risks of Smoking

    A new study claims that people who use vaping devices are 22 percent more likely to have high blood sugar – known as prediabetes – compared with those who have never used them. However, traditional cigarettes increase a combustible smokers risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 40 percent.

    Researchers from Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in the U.S. analyzed data from 600,000 people. They looked for links between e-cigarette use and prediabetes – a serious but reversible health condition in which blood sugar levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes.

    To determine the association between e-cigarette use and prediabetes, the investigators analyzed 2016–2018 data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). It said to be the largest annual nationally representative health survey of U.S. adults with data on health outcomes, health-related risk behaviors, preventive services, and chronic medical conditions.

    “Our study demonstrated a clear association of prediabetes risk with the use of e-cigarettes. With both e-cigarette use and prevalence of prediabetes dramatically on the rise in the past decade, our discovery that e-cigarettes carry a similar risk to traditional cigarettes with respect to diabetes is important for understanding and treating vulnerable individuals,” said Shyam Biswal, the study’s lead investigator.

    The researchers state that the possible link between combustible cigarettes, e-cigarettes and prediabetes is not understood. However, nicotine, which is in both traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes, has long been linked to a rise in blood sugar levels, according to news reports.

    The results, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, showed that current e-cigarette users are 22 percent more likely to have prediabetes compared with those who those who had never used them, while former vapers still had a 12 percent higher risk.

    Prediabetes is reversible with lifestyle management, according to reports.

  • Science Council Creates List of Vaping ‘Junk Science’

    Science Council Creates List of Vaping ‘Junk Science’

    There may be no industry with more misinformation than vaping. The American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) today published a list of many of the vaping and e-cigarette related studies that involved “junk science.”

    Credit: Kraken Images

    “The media reports the results of sloppy vaping research, then quickly forgets them. We do not,” writes Cameron English for the pro-industry advocacy organization founded in 1978. “What follows is a list of many of the low-quality studies that have investigated the alleged health risks of e-cigarette use. We’ll regularly update this catalog of bad studies as necessary.”

    The list has all the recent players, such as vaping’s impact on erectile dysfunction, stroke, bone damage and mental health.

    “The past year has seen the publication of many studies alleging that e-cigarette use (vaping) carries very serious health consequences, everything from depression to erectile dysfunction and higher stroke risk,” English writes. “Each paper generated widespread media coverage, usually one news outlet duplicating the uncritical coverage of the last, giving consumers the false impression that vaping poses a greater health threat than it actually does. When we examined these studies in more detail, we identified their serious flaws and reported them to our readers.”

    English also suggests that health reporters tend to obsess over a topic for a few days then forget it entirely, quickly moving on to the next exaggerated study. This means the public often only hears the information relayed from the faulty study and is never informed that the information isn’t sound.