People who vape are almost 20 per cent more likely to develop heart failure than those who have never vaped, a significant new study has found.
The US study is the most conclusive evidence yet that vaping may cause heart failure - an incurable condition when the heart is unable to pump blood around the body properly.
Around 1.7 million adults now vape in Australia, with the trend steadily growing since 2018.
The US study, presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session, looked at a very large sample size, 175,667 participants, with an average age of 52.
Of that group, 3242 developed heart failure within the average 45-month follow-up period.
"More and more studies are linking e-cigarettes to harmful effects and finding that it might not be as safe as previously thought," Dr Yakubu Bene-Alhasan, the study's lead author, said.
"The difference we saw was substantial.
"It's worth considering the consequences to your health, especially with regard to heart health."
In determining probabilities, researchers said they accounted for demographic and socioeconomic difference, heart disease risk factors and people's past and current use of substances, including alcohol and tobacco products.
Electronic nicotine products have often been pitched as a safer alternative to smoking, but new research is beginning to question that and is highlighting potential negative effects.
According to a report prepared for the Australian government last year, almost 400,000 people started vaping in a 12-month period between December 2022 and 2023.
That represented a 30 per cent year-on-year rise.
In 2019, only 9.6 per cent of Australian teens aged 14 to 17 had ever used e‑cigarettes; this percentage had nearly tripled by 2022–2023, to 28 per cent.
Bene-Alhasan said his study was "long overdue, especially considering how much e-cigarettes have gained traction".
"We don't want to wait too long to find out eventually that it might be harmful, and by that time a lot of harm might already have been done."
Australia is making legislative moves to try and cut easy access to vaping.
Vapes containing nicotine can now only be sold in pharmacies.
