The Effects of Heated Tobacco Products Use on Lung Function and Volatile Organic Compounds in Exhaled Air

The World Health Organization estimates that smoking is one of the leading causes of premature death worldwide with an estimated 5-8 million lives lost annually due to tobacco usage.

Heated tobacco products (HTP) is a new form of tobacco products. HTP usually consists of a pod with tobacco that is mixed with glycerol which is inserted into a heating chamber. HTP is not combusted but only heated. Previous studies into smoking cessation with regular cigarettes and electronic cigarettes have suggested a risk for double usage instead of cessation, augmenting a nicotine addiction. There is a risk that HTP use simply enhances nicotine usage and smoking addiction.

There is limited data on the health effects of HTP. A majority of the studies available have reported conflicts of interest to manufacturers of HTP. It has been shown that aerosols from HTP contain toxic compounds and free radicals just as in regular cigarette smoke, albeit in lower concentrations (6-8). Furthermore, aerosols from HTP can spread in a room, enabling passive exposure (9). It has been shown that there is a decrease in harmful biomarkers in smokers that switch to HTP after 5 days of usage but also of a higher HTP consumption compared to regular smoking. There are few studies on effects of HTP in humans. We seek to assess the effects of HTP usage on lung function and the presence of volatile organic compounds in exhaled air using non invasive methods.

Subjects and criteria:

Twenty five male or female occasional tobacco users (age 18-40, maximum 10 cigarettes per month or 10 pouches of snus per month) will be included. They have to be healthy, having no preexisting conditions or take any medications. All subjects will have to complete a normal health declaration.