FRIDAY, Oct. 30, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Heated tobacco is gaining popularity around the world, marketed as a less harmful alternative to cigarettes.
But new research is raising red flags — finding that just one session can affect cardiovascular function.
These devices heat processed tobacco instead of burning it and produce an inhalable nicotine aerosol.
"Heated tobacco products ... are often marketed as less harmful alternatives to conventional cigarettes," said lead author Lea Strohm, a scientist at University Medical Center Mainz in Germany. "However, independent evidence on their immediate effects on cardiovascular health, and the body as a whole, remains limited."
In a study of 30 otherwise healthy smokers, her team measured the effects of using just two heated tobacco sticks over 8 to 12 minutes.
They found reduced blood vessel function, increased blood pressure and signs of DNA damage in blood cells.
Blood vessel function dropped by 11%, while systolic blood pressure — the top number in a blood pressure reading — rose about 3 points.
"These results challenge claims that heated tobacco products are substantially less harmful to the cardiovascular system compared with conventional cigarettes," Strohm said in a news release.
Researchers said heated tobacco should be regulated like cigarettes, with restrictions on advertising and flavors, to protect young people from nicotine addiction.
They said more research is needed to understand the long-term health risks.
The study was published Oct. 27 in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.
More information
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on heated tobacco products.
SOURCE: HealthDay TV, Oct. 30, 2026
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