A new study that investigated the levels of benzaldehyde inhaled from e-cigarettes showed that the cherry flavor has higher levels of benzaldehyde and may pose more of a health risk.

Benzaldehyde is a key ingredient in e-cigarette fruit flavorings and has been shown to irritate the airways in both animal and workplace exposure studies. For the study, the researchers categorized the 145 e-cigarettes used in the study according to their labels. According to Medical News Today, the groups were as follows: 40 berry/tropical fruit, 37 tobacco, 15 alcohol, 11 chocolate/sweet, 11 coffee/tea, 10 mint/menthol, 10 cherry and 11 “other.”

The researchers then produced aerosol vapor in the quantity of 30 puffs from each e-cigarette using an automatic smoking simulator. This was done in two series consisting of 15 puffs each with a 5-minute pause in between. Next, the researchers measured the quantities of benzaldehyde and calculated a daily inhaled dose of the compound for each product using the estimation that an experienced e-cigarette vapor puffs on an e-cigarette 163 times per day, as noted on the Medical News Today report.

Subsequently, the research team compared the inhaled e-cigarette dose with that of a conventional cigarette in addition to a hypothetical maximum permissible dose that healthy workers could be exposed to during an 8-hour shift. The results showed that benzaldehyde was present in 108 out of the 145 e-cigarettes, with the highest levels found in the cherry flavored e-cigarettes, Specifically, the team found yields of the compound that were 43 times higher in cherry e-cigarettes.

In addition, the benzaldehyde inhaled from 30 puffs of the e-cigarettes was often greater than those from a normal cigarette. According to the Medical News Today report, the daily-inhaled dose from cherry e-cigarettes was 70.3 ?g, which is over 1,000 times lower than the permissible exposure limit dose for benzaldehyde concentrations in the workplace.

The researchers do note that there were some limitations of the study; for example, because a simulator was used, it may not reflect actual inhalation while smoking an e-cigarette. However, the findings of the study still indicate the risks linked with cherry e-cigarettes, writing, “Users of cherry-flavored products may inhale significantly higher doses of benzaldehyde compared with users of other flavored products.”

Source: Medical News Today