Vaping May Disproportionately Affect Heart Health for This Gender, New Study Suggests

The dangers of e-cigarettes include cancer-causing chemicals and highly-addictive nicotine—ingredients that can take a serious toll while keeping you coming back for more.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t spare your cardiovascular health, either. In fact, the American Heart Association (AHA) points out that both e-cigarettes and combustible tobacco cigarettes can contribute to high blood pressure, increased heart rate, blood vessel constriction, and worsened physical performance—a predictive marker of future heart disease.

Now, a new study from researchers at Canada’s McGill University has found that some of the heart health risks associated with vaping may disproportionately affect men (or individuals assigned male at birth) over women. In particular, it appears that the risk for atherosclerosis—a buildup of fats and cholesterol in and on the artery walls—shows a gender gap among those who vape.

To complete their in vivo study, the researchers selected mice with hyperlipidemia, or higher-than-normal levels of lipids (fats) in their blood. They then exposed the animals to e-cigarette aerosols via a nasal spray over the course of 16 weeks.

Using “exposure regimens to mimic human vaping patterns,” the team next tracked the animals’ plasma total cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL cholesterol levels (which experts consider the riskier of the two types of cholesterol), comparing the data to that of a control group exposed only to system air.

The study, published in the journal Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, ultimately concluded that male mice exposed to e-cigarette aerosols saw increased levels of atherosclerotic plaque, while female mice did not. “Moreover, these male mice also had a significant increase in aortic and sinus plaque area,” the study authors wrote.

While much is still unknown about the long-term effects of vaping, the study states that chronic e-cigarette use “disrupts circulating lipid levels,” which can significantly raise LDL cholesterol levels.

The researchers urge that the data available are insufficient to support the claim that vaping is healthier than traditional smoking. Their findings are especially urgent, they say, given the “youth vaping epidemic, of which the health consequences will not be known for decades.”

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