The popularity of e-cigarettes nowadays is outstanding, many people uses electronic cigarettes to help them quit smoking. Many also believe that these e-cigarettes are risk-free, however, the question is, is it not harmful?
E-cigarettes are relatively new to the market, no clear indications are showing how it will affect users in long terms. This does not mean that they are safe as there is also no proof showing that e-cigarettes are secure for usage. Nevertheless, it is generally agreed to be much safer than tobacco smokes but the growing research on e-cigarettes shows that it has negative consequences.
What are the negative consequences?
Typically, the e-cigarettes also contain the addictive substance nicotine which could lead users to start smoking conventional tobacco cigarettes which in long-terms has many health known risks involved.
The University of North Carolina made a research on the substances used in e-cigarettes, they found that the primary ingredients contain:
- Propylene glycol & vegetable glycerin – these substances are toxic to the human cell
- Acrolein – can cause acute lung injury, asthma, and possibly lung cancer
It is also found that electronic cigarettes produce several toxic chemicals such as acetaldehyde and formaldehyde which could lead to lung and cardiovascular diseases.
How will e-cigarettes affect my health insurance premiums?
The insurance premium from electronic cigarettes is still under discussion as there is no clear evidence of the long-term effects caused by these devices and chemicals used. There are many ongoing assessments and research to find the real effects and risks of e-cigarettes.
The argument from conventional cigarettes and e-cigarettes is that these e-cigarettes help people to stop smoking. Researchers from the University College London argues that e-cigarettes are less harmful, they noted that the most dangerous substance is tar and by offering people with tar free smokes many health fatalities can be avoided.
The World Health Organization (WHO) however released a warning that e-cigarettes carry a range of health-threatening risks which includes the exposure to nicotine which doubles the chance to smoke conventional cigarettes.
Some insurer has already started to review their insurance policy in regards to e-cigarettes. Morgan Price is actually one of the first to do so in January 2020. The changes made from their policy wordings includes:
- Exclusion 27 – Professional sports and amateur sports exclusion has been amended.
- Exclusion 48 – Claims arising from the use of e-cigarettes.
- Exclusion 51 – Any motorcycle accident where a crash helmet has not been worn, whether or not it is required by law in the country of claim.
- Exclusion 52 – Excludes any ‘over the counter’ drugs or medicines available without a physician’s prescription
If you are a smoker it is always better, to tell the truth, and declare your usage of nicotine as if you choose to hide the fact on your usage it may risk your coverage benefit. If you use e-cigarettes as a form to stop your smoking habits, feel free to do so, however, we do not know about the coverage expected from it.
