What is the impact of vaping on teeth and oral health?

"Humans started smoking long before modern science and there is a wealth of robust evidence on its health effects. The message is clear: smoking is extremely damaging to oral health. Beyond the bad breath, brown stains and loss of taste, tar and toxins in tobacco smoke increase the risk of gum disease. In severe cases, this can cause teeth to fall out. The disease can be harder to spot in smokers though, because nicotine reduces blood flow in the gums."

"This makes them less likely to bleed, which is one of the early warning signs of disease. Smokers may also struggle to overcome gum disease because of the continued onslaught of smoke and the effect smoking has on the immune system. Smoking causes more than a dozen types of cancer throughout the body and more than half of mouth cancers are linked to the habit."

"The impact of vaping on teeth and oral health is still being thrashed out. Far fewer studies have looked at the issue and many that have are flawed. A common problem is that studies fail to ensure vapers are not smoking cigarettes as well. The absolute effects of vapes and their impact on oral health are unknown, a spokesperson for the British Dental Association said. But they added that recent, limited evidence did raise concerns over oral dryness, irritation and gum disease caused by vapes."

Actor Lily James blamed vaping for damaging her teeth and causing tooth decay that required her first dental filling. Many vapers are former smokers or smoke as well, so smoking’s established oral harms are relevant. Smoking causes bad breath, brown stains, loss of taste, increases gum disease risk, and in severe cases can cause teeth to fall out. Nicotine reduces gum blood flow, masking bleeding and making gum disease harder to detect and treat. Smoking links to more than a dozen cancers, with over half of mouth cancers connected to smoking. Vaping’s effects on oral health remain uncertain; fewer, often flawed studies frequently fail to exclude concurrent smoking. The British Dental Association says absolute effects are unknown, though limited evidence raises concerns about oral dryness, irritation and gum disease from vapes.

Read at www.theguardian.com