From David Bareham
As an avid observer of the debate on the safety and efficacy of electronic cigarettes, I read your report (newscientist.com/article/dn28723) with great interest. I agree with toxicologist John Britton that the exposures used in the study were excessive and unrealistic. But I also note his at a that the “likely real and potential harms of e-cigarettes to users” include modest increases in risk of emphysema, pulmonary infection, cardiovascular events, lung cancer and pulmonary fibrosis – though he expects these risks to be “much lower than for tobacco smoking”.
The precautionary statements by Jessica Wang-Rodriguez at the end of your article are valid: vapers “shouldn’t assume it’s a safe alternative to smoking”.
Louth, Lincolnshire, UK
