Anses, a French government-funded body on public health and food safety, claimed that vaping is perceived as a substitute for smoking but is not risk-free in terms of health.

Approximately 6 per cent of the population in France vapes every day, or over three million individuals, as 2024 statistics provided by Santé publique France, the country-level organisation that oversees population health.

Although the risks of smoking have long been known, Anses claimed that the health impacts of vaping are not as well-known, especially in the medium and long term.

Scientific literature indicates that vaping is linked to potential health outcomes in the medium and long term, in particular, the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, it said, as well as the risks associated with such a practice are attributed to recurring exposure to toxic substances.

This also encompassed aldehydes, which were termed as irritants that had cancer-related effects.

Anses cautioned, “the fact that there is no combustion does not imply that exposure to dangerous substances is not present.”

It was based on approximately 3,000 academic articles, world reports, and industrial statements, and was composed of 14 specialists.

In an interview with the press before its release, one of the organisers of the Anses analysis, Carole Leroux, said, “the purpose was to examine the whole body of science and evaluate the evidence strength.”

Harms over time

According to Anses, vaping products containing nicotine have a high likelihood of cardiovascular outcomes, including blood pressure and heart rate increases. 

It stated that research indicates “potential impacts on the respiratory system, such as long-term lung disease and lung inflammation.”

In cancer, various studies have indicated biological alterations that are congruent with the initial phases of cancer progression, but Anses indicated that these do not permit it to infer that e-cigarettes have a cancer-contributing impact at this point.

Other potential risks in the course of pregnancy were also noted by the agency. Vaping, especially with nicotine, may cause harmful cardiovascular and respiratory effects that are potentially detrimental to children who were exposed in utero, such as alterations in heart and respiratory cells during their development.

Anses emphasised that the effects of vaping are not as serious as those of tobacco.

The number one cause of preventable premature death in France is tobacco consumption, which claims approximately 75,000 lives annually, with 45,000 of them being cancer-related.

The director of the Anses unit, which assesses tobacco and products associated with it, Benoit Labarbe, added that e-cigarettes could assist in getting people to quit smoking, but that they should only be a transitional measure.

Youth uptake

Anses warned of the duration of vaping by people. In France, the proportion of vapers who had been using e-cigarettes longer than four years had risen to 32 per cent compared to 24 per cent in 2022.

The agency stated that this trend is an indication of stabilisation and increasing loyalty to e-cigarettes by regular users undergoing a longer period of use, which is usually observed in former smokers.

An Anses study also examined teens in 2023 and stated that adolescent users have their own dynamics and motivations, unlike adults.

Of the 510 of the total 13-17 enquired about their smoking, 32 per cent had never smoked, or had smoked only once, a proportion far higher than in the adult population, where the proportion stands at 2 per cent.

“This is an indication of being initiated into vaping without prior tobacco consumption, usually because of curiosity, taste or a sense of fashion,” Anses said.

Not enough foresight was made regarding the risks of cancer since vaping products started to appear at the beginning of the 2010s.

The agency added that the question is also more difficult to investigate since most of the adult vapers are current or former smokers, and it suggested a detailed research on the never smokers.