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Last updated on Tuesday, May 27, 2014
(INDIANAPOLIS) - E-cigarettes are touted as the safer alternative to tobacco. But, there’s new research that says e-cigs might put their users in grave danger.
A study from the University of California-San Diego says people who use e-cigarettes are more likely to be infected by the MRSA bacteria, which are resistant to antibiotics.
"The research showed that by inhaling the e-cigarette vapor, MRSA avoid being killed by our white blood cells due to changes in the bacteria," said Dr. Michael Busk, a pulmonologist at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis.
MRSA are common in many hospitals - Busk says the bacteria have been able to evolve to where regular antibiotics have no effect on them, making it difficult for hospitals to remove MRSA from what is supposed to be a sterile environment. So when an e-cigarette user goes to a hospital, either as a patient or a visitor, he says they could be in trouble.
"Once you have MRSA in your body, it stays in your nasal passages, and when you inhale an e-cigarette, it can go from the nasal passages to the rest of you," Busk said.
Proponents of E-cigarettes say their lack of tobacco makes them an effective way to quit using tobacco, eliminating the tar and second-hand smoke of traditional cigarettes. But Busk says there is no way for any type of smoker to avoid MRSA.
"We've already done the research on regular cigarettes, and they are even more cause-resistant to MRSA (than E-cigarettes)."
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