Popcorn Lung and a New Habit That Increases Your Risk

In previous times doctors considered Popcorn Lung to be a rare condition. However, that assumption might soon change. In this blog, we bring you the fascinating story of this lung disease with a funny name. Plus, we will bring you a warning so you can reduce your risk of contracting it.

 Vaping: The Good, the Bad and the Popcorn Lung

So what is the vaping-popcorn lung connection? Most high-end vape makers don’t use diacetyl, but in 2015, more than half of the mass-market e-cigarettes studied were found to contain the chemical – especially flavored vape juice. The diacetyl makes the flavors richer, but because the vapor is being breathed in, it exposes users to the risk of popcorn lung, which increases the longer these liquids are vaped. Particularly concerning is the fact that diacetyl is primarily found in flavored e-liquids – which tend to be more appealing to teenagers.

Does microwave popcorn really cause lung disease?

Rose says there isn’t a lot of scientific data that can tell us the safest way to prepare and eat microwave popcorn, but she has some advice: “Try to avoid taking deep breaths of the vapors when the heated bags are first opened, just to be safe.” And while you’re at it, you’ll probably want to avoid e-cigs, too.

How Vaping could Cause a Condition Called Popcorn Lung

One of the inhaled chemicals associated with the cause of popcorn lung is Diacetyl. Diacetyl is a chemical used in many processed foods to impart a buttery or creamy flavor. In the past, it was used by manufacturers to give popcorn its buttery taste and in 2002 eight cases of irreversible lung disease were documented in people who had worked at a Missouri popcorn factory between 1992 and 2000. This is where the condition’s name is derived from. But as well as being found in foods, the chemical has also been found in the flavoring of e-liquids in e-cigarettes - before it was banned in 2016 under EU law.

Popcorn Lung: A Dangerous Risk of Flavored E-Cigarettes

Over a decade ago, workers in a microwave popcorn factory were sickened by breathing in diacetyl—the buttery-flavored chemical in foods like popcorn, caramel and dairy products. While this flavoring may be tasty, it was linked to deaths and hundreds of cases of bronchiolitis obliterans, a serious and irreversible lung disease. As a result, the major popcorn manufacturers removed diacetyl from their products, but some people are still being exposed to diacetyl - not through food flavorings as a worksite hazard, but through e-cigarette vapor.

The Chemical Marketplace: Popcorn Lung — The Perils of Microwave Popcorn Return

More than 80,000 chemicals are produced and used in the United States. This is one of theirstories. When it comes to microwave popcorn, best to emulate Bill Clinton: Don’t inhale.

The flavoring chemicals in e-cigarettes are linked to a disease known as “popcorn lung”

Researchers at Harvard’s school of public health have published a new study about the safety of electronic cigarettes, and it has nothing to do with nicotine. More than 75% of the flavored e-cigarettes the researchers tested contained the chemical diacetyl, which multiple studies have linked to lung damage.