Uploaded March 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Aerosols are a mix of tiny particles and/or droplets in air or another gas. Electronic cigarettes produce an aerosol by heating a liquid that usually contains nicotine, flavorings and other chemicals which can impact the indoor air quality (IAQ) if used indoors or near air intakes or entryways.
While e-cigarette users inhale this aerosol, so too do people nearby when the user exhales. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), e-cigarette aerosols may contain harmful and potentially harmful substances, including:
• Nicotine
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
• Ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs
• Cancer-causing chemicals
• Heavy metals such as lead, tin and nickel
• Flavorings such as diacetyl, a chemical linked to a serious lung disease
The types and amount of aerosols and chemicals these products release vary depending on several factors, including:
• The type of product
• The chemicals in the product
• How much of the product is used
• How long the product is used for
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns that even after a person stops vaping or smoking, some of the chemicals released can remain indoors for a long time. These chemicals can build up on hard surfaces such as walls, tables and floors, and embed in soft surfaces like clothing, upholstery, drapes, bedding and carpets. In some cases, these chemicals can be released back into the air, leading to thirdhand exposure. People experience thirdhand exposure when they touch contaminated surfaces or breathe the air where vaping or smoking chemicals are released from surfaces back into the air.
EPA also cautions that while ventilation, filtration and air cleaning techniques may reduce harmful substances released from e-cigarette use indoors, they are not likely to eliminate them.
These are just a few of the many things to know about secondhand electronic-cigarette aerosols and indoor air quality. To learn more about this or other air quality, building science, industrial hygiene, environmental, health or safety issues, please visit the websites shown below.
Clark Seif Clark csceng.com
EMSL Analytical, Inc. emsl.com
LA Testing latesting.com
Zimmetry Environmental zimmetry.com
CTSI ctsiweb.com
Healthy Indoors Magazine healthyindoors.com
Aerosols are a mix of tiny particles and/or droplets in air or another gas. Electronic cigarettes produce an aerosol by heating a liquid that usually contains nicotine, flavorings and other chemicals which can impact the indoor air quality (IAQ) if used indoors or near air intakes or entryways.
While e-cigarette users inhale this aerosol, so too do people nearby when the user exhales. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), e-cigarette aerosols may contain harmful and potentially harmful substances, including:
• Nicotine
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
• Ultrafine particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs
• Cancer-causing chemicals
• Heavy metals such as lead, tin and nickel
• Flavorings such as diacetyl, a chemical linked to a serious lung disease
The types and amount of aerosols and chemicals these products release vary depending on several factors, including:
• The type of product
• The chemicals in the product
• How much of the product is used
• How long the product is used for
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns that even after a person stops vaping or smoking, some of the chemicals released can remain indoors for a long time. These chemicals can build up on hard surfaces such as walls, tables and floors, and embed in soft surfaces like clothing, upholstery, drapes, bedding and carpets. In some cases, these chemicals can be released back into the air, leading to thirdhand exposure. People experience thirdhand exposure when they touch contaminated surfaces or breathe the air where vaping or smoking chemicals are released from surfaces back into the air.
EPA also cautions that while ventilation, filtration and air cleaning techniques may reduce harmful substances released from e-cigarette use indoors, they are not likely to eliminate them.
These are just a few of the many things to know about secondhand electronic-cigarette aerosols and indoor air quality. To learn more about this or other air quality, building science, industrial hygiene, environmental, health or safety issues, please visit the websites shown below.
Clark Seif Clark csceng.com
EMSL Analytical, Inc. emsl.com
LA Testing latesting.com
Zimmetry Environmental zimmetry.com
CTSI ctsiweb.com
Healthy Indoors Magazine healthyindoors.com
