Researchers just finished the largest study ever on e-cigarettes and stroke risk, and the results are alarming

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• On Wednesday, researchers at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference in Honolulu presented the biggest study ever on e-cigarette use and stroke risk.
• The researchers looked at data for 66,795 e-cigarette users and 343,856 non-smokers, and found that using e-cigarettes could increase a person's risk for a variety of conditions.
• Specifically, researchers found e-cigarette use could increase a person's risk of stroke by 71%, heart attack by 59%, and coronary heart disease by 40%.
• They were not, however, able to pinpoint how much or how often a person would have to use e-cigarettes to contribute to these risks, Paul Ndunda, lead author of the study, told INSIDER.
• "This is a preliminary study that calls for larger longitudinal studies that can establish causes and effects," Ndunda told INSIDER.

Despite the growing popularity of e-cigarettes, existing research on the devices has been small in scope. On Wednesday, however, researchers at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference in Honolulu presented the biggest study to date on e-cigarette use and stroke risk, which revealed that using these devices to consume tobacco could increase the risk of stroke, as well as heart disease and heart attack.

Researchers used data from the 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), an annual phone survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that looks at US citizens' health risk factors, chronic conditions, and use of health-related services. Specifically, they looked at instances of stroke, heart disease, and heart attack in 66,795 e-cigarette users and 343,856 non-smokers. Based on this information, researchers found a link between e-cigarette use and a heightened risk for the aforementioned conditions.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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