SALUTE BENESSERE SIGARETTA ELETTRONICA

Although the vast majority of people are aware of the risks associated with cigarette smoking, quitting smoking is extremely difficult. Whether it's a habit rooted in time, or smoking represents a sporadic habit, giving up entirely to cigarettes is a very difficult goal. The main difficulty is certainly linked to the dependence caused by the nicotine contained in cigarettes, but the role of many aspects related to the consumption of tobacco is certainly noteworthy: we think, for example, of gestures, taste and social opportunity. Therefore, among smokers wishing to quit, recourse to substitutive devices, designed to help us to give up tobacco gradually, by releasing certain quantities of nicotine into our organism is frequent.

Among these, the electronic cigarette has enjoyed some success for some years. But how does it work and what are its effects on our body? Does it hurt or can it be considered a healthy alternative to the classic cigarette?

HEALTH WELLNESS ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE

Since 2003, when the first model was released in Beijing, various types of electronic nicotine vaporisers, called simply "electronic cigarettes" or "e-cig", have appeared on the market.

Over the years, numerous formats have been put on the market: there are cylindrical shapes (very similar to a common cigarette or a ballpoint pen) or a square shape; the functioning and the internal structure remain, however, almost identical.

Vacuuming steam from an electronic cigarette through the appropriate mouthpiece is the action known as vaping, precisely because the entire mechanism of the device is designed to produce steam through the combination of three components:

    a heating atomizer that produces steam
    a rechargeable lithium battery that powers the atomizer
    a small tank, also rechargeable, which contains flavored liquid.

Equipped, sometimes, with an LED illuminator that simulates the burning of the cigarette upon aspiration, these devices are reusable in the medium or long term and require minimal maintenance. The steam produced is generated by a sensor, present in the atomizer, which detects the different pressure activated by suction, while the manually replaceable part by those who use electronic cigarettes is mainly liquid, also sold as "e-juice". It may or may not contain nicotine, may or may not have an olfactory connotation close to that of tobacco and may be aromatized as desired.

THE MECHANISMS OF NICOTINE DEPENDENCE

That of supplying the tank of one's e-cig with a nicotine-based liquid is a personal option; as we will see, however, it seems that almost all those who use electronic cigarettes choose to continue taking nicotine through them. This choice is closely linked to the nicotine addiction developed by the tobacco smoker over the years.

As we know, nicotine is an organic compound found in numerous plants, including tobacco leaf. The correlations between the effects of nicotine on our organism and the persistence of smoking habits are well known: even at low concentrations, its intake would even trigger the activity of dopamine neuro-receptors, favoring an ephemeral and transient sensation of pleasure.

If, on the one hand, the concentrations of nicotine contained in a cigarette manage to activate our neuro-receptors, on the other, the latter are progressively desensitized by the abuse of cigarettes, making us actually tolerant to nicotine. This seems to be the reason why we can not limit ourselves to a few cigarettes, but we feel the need to smoke more and more often, using substitutive mechanisms of recruitment, although it is still not clear whether the electronic cigarette is bad.

THE ELECTRONIC CIGARETTE HURTS? HERE ARE THE PROS AND THE COUNTERS

According to the Ministry of Health, 2017 saw the confirmation that the 83.4% of people using electronic cigarettes continue to use tobacco. It seems that only in 14.4% of cases e-cig has totally replaced traditional cigarettes: in all other cases, users of electronic cigarettes continue, regularly or sporadically, to smoke tobacco. It is interesting then the fact that almost all those who buy liquids for electronic cigarettes prefer those based on nicotine: this aspect leads us to detect how, in the absence of medical control, the electronic cigarette is not enough to heal from addiction from nicotine but, on the contrary, tends to maintain constant levels in our body.

To understand if the electronic cigarette is bad, let's start by saying that for sure, since there is no combustion in the production of steam, aspirating from an electronic cigarette does not imply the inhalation of carbon monoxide; it is equally true, then, that e-cig does not contain the highly toxic compounds present in tobacco, filter and paper of a traditional cigarette.

However, in addition to the evidence that electronic cigarettes do not support us in our attempt to renounce tactile and gestural dependence on cigarettes, many wonder what long-term effects involve the action of aspirating steam containing chemical flavors. One wonders, for example, if the propylene glycol, present in 89% of the e-juice on the market, is irritating to the mouth and the respiratory tract; the same perplexity applies to vegetable glycerin, traceable in liquids in variable concentrations according to the needs and specific requests of e-cig users.

In short: if the question we asked ourselves at the beginning is whether the electronic cigarette is a danger or not for our health, the answer is probably to be found in an intermediate position between pros and cons. If you represent a support to leave tobacco initially, e-cig can only be useful at the beginning of our ex-smokers' journey; however, since the potentially harmful effects of the substances produced by the aspiration of aromatised steam on our respiratory system are still not clear, it is advisable to gradually abandon their use and get rid of nicotine dependence preferring the help and constant supervision of a specialist .

TABAGISM AND CARDIOVASCULAR RISK

On our blog we have often focused on the dynamics of cardiovascular risk, ie the risk factor of developing cardiovascular diseases. This coefficient is subjective, and is determined only in part by hereditary factors: in fact, it increases due to the habits of life harmful to our body. Smoking is one of these, but not only: it ranks even in the first places among the behaviors at the origin of cardiovascular diseases, for at least three reasons:

     increases the tendency of the blood to coagulate
     favors the onset of arterial hypertension
     increases the risk of heart attack.

The aspects we have just seen make it even more evident, if anything were needed, as quitting smoking represents an indisputable advantage for our health. We have seen, however, that even if the electronic cigarette hurts, potentially, then we must act on the mechanisms of nicotine addiction.

Beyond that, a crucial role in achieving our goals is played by the psychological dependence on smoking: we believe that smoking relaxes us, keeps us focused and that few cigarettes a day do not affect our health too much. With this spirit we often procrastinate our best intentions and we do not realize that, to quit smoking, in addition to having to develop a good willpower we may also need the support of a professional.

In this sense, if we have been smoking for some time, it may be useful first to check our cardiovascular risk coefficient, performing some tests under strict medical supervision (among the most prescribed we find the ecocolordoppler and the coronarography) in order to identify the measures to adopt to reduce the chances of developing cardiovascular disease.

And if the checks to be submitted are long and numerous? In this case, we can evaluate the option to adhere to a prevention program that constantly monitors the clinical risk of the onset of diseases related to cigarette smoking. UniSalute, for example, has thought of a formula that combines health coverage with a quick and personalized medical advice: we are talking about CuoreInSalute, which offers a series of conventioned facilities for the periodic delivery of laboratory tests that measure cardiovascular risk . Adhering to you means, among other things, to enjoy the expert consultation of experts on how to improve our lifestyle, during and after the smoking habits have ceased.

And you, how did you stop smoking? And, if you helped someone say goodbye to cigarettes, what support did you use?