Vaping during pregnancy harms offspring even without nicotine, study finds
Vaping e-liquid as well as nicotine causes weight gain, memory loss, behavioral changes and premature aging in the offspring of rats exposed to vaping.
A new study in mice has demonstrated that vaping during pregnancy has health consequences through early development into adulthood. The finding that both the vaping base solution, or e-liquid, and nicotine both impact development has been described as ‘pivotal’ by the authors.
The prevalence of smoking amongst all age groups has been in decline for many years; however, nicotine use is on the rise, driven by increases in vaping amongst young people. Nicotine is known to cause poor health side effects, but the long-term effects of vaping aren’t yet known.
To understand the impact of vaping, a team from West Virginia University School of Medicine (WV, USA) exposed pregnant rats to nicotine at different power settings, including a control group which was not exposed. They then monitored the offspring from 1 month until 12 months after birth, to simulate a human developing from 1.5 to 40 years old.
Vaping in a mouse model
The team reported that the offspring who were exposed to maternal vaping performed worse at object recognition and maze completion. They exhibited a reduction in SIRT1 and increases in beta-amyloid (Aβ) and NADPH oxidase 1, which contribute to neuroinflammation and advancing cellular senescence. Aβ is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease.
Cognitive impairment was greater in mice whose mothers were exposed to vaping at the higher power setting, 30 watts. Nicotine was also linked to worsened brain health and function overall.
E-liquid emerges as a key culprit
One of the study’s authors, Mark Olfert (West Virginia University School of Medicine), explained, “Blood vessel impairment (impacting how a vessel relaxes or constricts) was not due to nicotine but rather the base solution (known as e-liquid) used in vaping devices. The settings used to heat the e-liquid was also an important factor, a higher power setting caused greater impairment. Thus, vaping during pregnancy with or without nicotine leads to harm in offspring. Most concerning is that this damage stayed with the offspring through adolescents and into middle-age adult life, even though the offspring never directly vaped themselves.”
Olfert continued: “Finding that nicotine is not the only villain with smoking, and especially with vaping, was a pivotal moment. E-cigarettes have become increasingly popular, advertised as ‘safer’ than traditional cigarettes. Our study suggests that even if you vape without nicotine, your risk for cardiovascular disease is the same as if you are smoking a traditional cigarette.”
Although this study was conducted with a murine model, rather than a human model, the team hope that this work contributes to a better understanding of the risks of smoking and vaping for all users.
Olfert concluded, “We should not assume that vaping during pregnancy is either ‘safe’ or even ‘safer’ than smoking until we understand the long-term effects to both users and those indirectly exposed, such as in utero exposure during pregnancy.”