Study reveals risks of vaping menthol during pregnancy on fetal development

A new study suggests vaping menthol-flavoured e-cigarettes during pregnancy could negatively affect the development of unborn children. (Edgar Martinez / Pexels)

As vaping grows in popularity, concerns about its impact on pregnancy also continue to rise.

A new study from the University of California - Riverside, has uncovered potential risks associated with menthol-flavoured e-cigarettes for people who are expecting, suggesting they could negatively affect the development of an unborn child.

The research, published in STEM CELLS Translational Medicine, focused on human embryonic stem cells to explore how menthol, a widely used flavouring in e-cigarettes, influences early stages of human development.

It found that low concentrations of menthol could disrupt critical cellular processes in developing embryos.

“Pregnant and reproductive-aged women are turning to electronic cigarettes (ECs) as a substitute for tobacco cigarettes to minimize the well-established developmental risks associated with smoking,” the study said.

“Pregnant women who vape likely expose their embryos to menthol concentrations that are harmful.

“The researchers found that the menthol in e-cigarettes activates two stress-related channels in the blood of pregnant women who vape. These channels are involved in various body functions, including detecting heat, cold, pain, pressure, taste, and smell.

“Our data show that menthol concentrations in the blood of women who vape during pregnancy are high enough to activate TRPA1 and TRPM8 channels in human embryonic stem cells and that activation decreases colony growth, increases cell death, and increases colony migration,” the researchers said.

The study, which was funded by the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program and the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, adds to growing evidence that vaping during pregnancy may not be as harmless as previously thought.