Vapeboss – Alternative tobacco products, such as heated tobacco products, nicotine pouches, and e-cigarettes, have been proven to have a significantly lower risk profile compared to traditional cigarettes. This makes these products a potential solution for adult smokers to switch from smoking.

Pulmonologist Dr. Yahya Sp.P revealed that alternative tobacco products use a heating system at controlled temperatures that only produce water vapor or aerosol. This is different from cigarettes, which produce smoke from a combustion process.

According to Dr. Yahya, e-cigarettes are very different from traditional cigarettes. "Because they only contain water vapor and some essences, and secondly, they don't cause yellow teeth. Thirdly, they don't cause those around them to become passive smokers." The tar content in cigarettes that enters the oral cavity and the outermost layer of teeth, enamel, is what causes teeth to turn yellowish or brownish.

Dr. Yahya continued, nicotine in both e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes is addictive and only causes dependence, but it is not the main cause of dangerous diseases.

This is supported by an explanation from Cancer Research UK, an independent cancer research organization from the UK. According to its official website, the main trigger for dangerous diseases like cancer related to smoking is not nicotine, but TAR, a compound that arises from the combustion process in cigarettes.

Referring to the US National Cancer Institute, TAR contains various carcinogenic compounds that can trigger lung cancer, emphysema, and various other lung problems. Of the approximately 7,000 chemicals in cigarette smoke, 2,000 of them are found in TAR.

Toxicologist and Lecturer at the Faculty of Public Health, Airlangga University (UNAIR), Dr. Shoim Hidayat, added that so far, nicotine has been considered the source of health problems in cigarettes rather than TAR. In reality, it is TAR that causes various smoking-related diseases.

"So, nicotine is not a carcinogen at all. Carcinogenic substances are found in TAR," Shoim emphasized.

As a preventive measure, Shoim advised adult smokers to quit smoking to reduce TAR exposure. If difficult, adult smokers can switch to alternative tobacco products. These products use a heating system, producing water vapor (aerosol). Therefore, their risk profile is much lower than traditional cigarettes.

"The potential for disease due to chemicals is highly determined by their concentration. If it's very high, it has the potential to cause disease. So, if the intake is small, then the potential is small," said Shoim.

Source: Sindonews