Experts Caution Vapers About the Risk of Developing the Irreversible Condition Popcorn Lung

A U.S. teen reportedly developed the unusually named condition “popcorn lung” after secretly vaping for three years.

Popcorn lung, medically termed bronchiolitis obliterans, is a rare yet severe and irreversible lung disease that harms the small airways, causing ongoing coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, and fatigue.

The term “popcorn lung” originated in the early 2000s after several employees at a microwave popcorn factory developed lung issues from inhaling diacetyl—a chemical used to create popcorn’s buttery flavor.

Diacetyl, also known as 2,3-butanedione, is a flavoring compound that turns harmful when inhaled in aerosol form. It leads to inflammation and scarring in the bronchioles—the lungs’ smallest airways—making breathing progressively harder.

The outcome: irreversible, often debilitating lung damage.

Although diacetyl is the most well-known cause, inhaling other harmful chemicals, such as volatile carbonyls like formaldehyde and acetaldehyde, can also trigger popcorn lung—both of which researchers have found in e-cigarette vapors

The most concerning aspect? There is no cure for popcorn lung. Once the lungs are damaged, doctors focus on managing symptoms by administering bronchodilators, prescribing steroids, and, in severe cases, performing a lung transplantation.

Because of this, prevention – rather than treatment – is the most effective and only defense. However, for young vapers, prevention isn’t that simple.

The vaping dilemma

Vaping has become particularly popular among teenagers and young adults, likely because of the wide variety of flavored vape products – ranging from bubblegum and cotton candy to mango ice. However, these sweet, fruity flavors come with a chemical price.

E-liquids may have nicotine, but they also contain a mix of chemicals meant to attract users. While regulators approve many of these flavoring agents for food use, that doesn’t mean they’re safe to inhale.

When you consume chemicals, your digestive system processes them, and the liver filters them before they enter the bloodstream, which helps reduce their potential harm.

However, when people inhale chemicals, they bypass this filtration process altogether. They go directly into the lungs and then into the bloodstream, reaching vital organs like the heart and brain within seconds.

That’s what made the initial popcorn factory incidents so tragic. Eating butter-flavored popcorn? Completely harmless. Inhaling the buttery chemical? Devastating.

The chemical intricacy of vaping

The situation with vaping is even more unclear. Experts estimate that manufacturers currently use more than 180 distinct flavoring agents in e-cigarette products.

When heated, many of these chemicals decompose into new compounds, some of which have never been tested for safety when inhaled. This raises significant concerns.

Although diacetyl has been removed from certain vape products, it can still be present in others. Additionally, its replacements—acetoin and 2,3-pentanedione—could be equally harmful.

Even if diacetyl isn’t the only cause, repeated exposure to various chemicals and their byproducts could heighten the risk of popcorn lung and other respiratory issues.

The American teenager who developed the disease tragically reflected this. Her story is similar to the 2019 Evali crisis (e-cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury), which resulted in 68 deaths and more than 2,800 hospitalizations in the US.

The outbreak was ultimately traced back to vitamin E acetate, a thickening agent used in some cannabis vape products. When heated, it releases a highly toxic gas known as ketene.

Recent studies are sounding the alarm about the effects of vaping on the respiratory health of young people.

A global study discovered that adolescents who vape experience notably more respiratory symptoms, even after accounting for their smoking habits. The type of flavors, nicotine salts, and frequency of use were all associated with these symptoms.

Read the original article on: Sciencealert

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