When researchers from Yale and Duke University analyzed numerous brands of popular vaping products, they found that a majority contained neotame, an artificial sweetener that is 7,000-13,000 times sweeter than table sugar. In addition to concerns about whether the chemical is contained in many products, “little to nothing” is known about its health effects when inhaled.
“In fact, we don’t even have a good sense of how much neotame that is present in the liquids actually ends up in the aerosol of an e-cigarette,” said Hanno Erythropel, the lead author of the paper. “And how much of the neotame in the aerosol reaches the sweet taste receptors to actually create a sweet sensation? These are complex questions that are influenced by the type of e-cigarette, the power output of the device, the build of the device, and the puffing behavior of the user, to name just a few.” The results of the study were published today in JAMA.
Erythropel, a research scientist in the lab of Julie Zimmerman, professor of chemical and environmental engineering and of the environment, discussed the paper’s findings in more detail here.