Chemical Analysis of Aerosol from ElfBar Elfa Pod System Vaping Products Compared with Cigarette Smoke and Regulatory Safety Limits

Smoking-related disease risk is related to inhalational exposure to toxicants which are either present in tobacco and transferred into the cigarette smoke or formed during the processes of combustion and pyrolysis. In this study we assessed the levels of 17 analytes, which are present in various global regulatory and quality standards and recommendations for analytes to assess in tobacco/nicotine products and have a potential link to smoking-related disease, in the aerosol from four flavour variants of the ElfBar Elfa pod-system vaping product. These were compared to levels in cigarette smoke or to defined safety limits. A number of analytes were below detectable or quantifiable levels in all of the vaping product aerosols, including carbon monoxide, the tobacco-specific nitrosamines NNK and NNN, acrolein, benzo[a]pyrene, 1,3butadiene, benzene, cadmium and arsenic. For the analytes formaldehyde and acetaldehyde, these were all between 99.6% and 99.9% lower than levels in 3R4F reference cigarette smoke depending on the flavour assessed. For metals which were quantifiable in the vaping product aerosols, assumed potential exposure levels among users were all significantly lower than either Permissible Daily Exposure levels for inhalational medicines as defined by the US Pharmacopeia, or below Recommended Exposure Limits as defined by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health. Overall, our findings suggest that toxicant exposure among smokers completely switching to using the vaping products assessed would be significantly reduced, or eliminated, compared with continuing to smoke. Further, metal exposure during use of the vaping products assessed is not likely to give rise to toxicological concern.