▲ Various liquid e-cigarettes are displayed at an e-cigarette shop in Seoul on the 29th.
In the government's first-ever harmful ingredient test on tobacco, human carcinogens were detected not only in conventional cigarettes and heated tobacco products, but also in liquid e-cigarettes.
In particular, formaldehyde, classified as a Group 1 human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), was identified in 99 out of the 105 liquid e-cigarette products tested.
However, these findings for liquid e-cigarettes are the result of testing the liquids themselves. They do not directly show how much users are exposed to harmful substances during actual inhalation or demonstrate a difference in harmfulness compared to other types of tobacco.
The government emphasized the importance of smoking cessation, warning that people should not assume a specific tobacco product is less harmful simply because the detected amount of harmful ingredients is low.
Following a review by the Tobacco Harmful Ingredients Management Policy Committee, the government released the results of harmful ingredient tests on 465 domestically manufactured and imported tobacco products for the first time today (the 29th) on the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety website.
Previously, cigarette packs only displayed information on nicotine and tar content, along with the presence of six carcinogenic substances such as nickel and cadmium.
However, detailed information regarding the harmful ingredients contained in tobacco has been confirmed through this testing.
The products tested by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety consist of 256 conventional cigarettes, 104 heated tobacco products, and 105 liquid e-cigarettes.
The tested ingredients include 44 types each for conventional and heated cigarettes, and 20 types for liquid e-cigarettes, totaling 46 types excluding overlapping ingredients.
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety explained that for conventional and heated cigarettes, emissions generated during smoking were captured to measure the content per stick.
In contrast, liquid e-cigarettes were tested using the liquid itself.
The test results showed that nicotine and tar were detected in all conventional and heated cigarette products.
The detected amounts per conventional cigarette stick ranged from 0.8 to 2.6 mg for nicotine and 11.7 to 40.4 mg for tar.
In addition to nicotine and tar, Group 1 human carcinogens including formaldehyde, 1,3-butadiene, benzene, and cadmium were detected in all conventional cigarette products.
Other Group 1 carcinogens such as 2-aminonaphthalene, 4-aminobiphenyl, NNN, NNK, acrylonitrile, and benzopyrene were identified in most conventional cigarettes.
The detected amounts of nicotine and tar in heated tobacco products were slightly lower than those in conventional cigarettes.
Nicotine per stick ranged from 0.1 to 1.2 mg, and tar ranged from 10.3 to 32.0 mg.
However, formaldehyde was detected in all heated tobacco products, and NNN, NNK, and benzopyrene were found in most products.
All liquid e-cigarette products were confirmed to contain nicotine, propylene glycol, and glycerin.
The detected amount of nicotine ranged from 5.7 to 20.0 mg per 1 g of liquid.
Furthermore, formaldehyde was detected in 99 out of the 105 liquid e-cigarette products.
NNN, NNK, and arsenic were found in only 1 to 2 products each.
Lee Sung-kyu, head of the Korea Tobacco Control Research and Education Center, explained during a briefing at the Government Complex-Seoul that the nicotine and tar content currently indicated on cigarette packs may differ from the results of this test.
He stated that discrepancies in figures may occur due to differences in testing methods.
The government emphasized that the results of this investigation measured harmful ingredient content under standardized test conditions.
It explained that specific products cannot be judged as less harmful simply because the detected amount of a particular ingredient is low or below the limit of quantification.
The government also warned that heated and liquid e-cigarettes differ from conventional cigarettes in their raw materials, additives, and heating or vaporization methods, raising the possibility of new harmful substances being present.
It requested refrainment from directly comparing figures across different tobacco types, noting that while conventional and heated cigarettes measure content per stick, liquid e-cigarettes are tested based on weight.
Director Lee stated, "What is being announced today is just the tip of the iceberg."
He added that more information will be provided as methods for measuring harmful ingredients continue to develop.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and other organizations estimate that tobacco contains some 7,000 chemicals and about 70 carcinogens, making it detrimental to physical health.
The Tobacco Harmful Ingredients Management Policy Committee stressed that the test results should not be used as a criterion for choosing a less harmful tobacco product, reiterating that quitting smoking is paramount.
Under the amended Tobacco Business Act implemented in April, the government plans to test and disclose harmful ingredients in synthetic nicotine tobacco starting next year.
It also plans to identify harmful ingredients generated exclusively in heated tobacco products to develop testing methods, and establish testing procedures capable of examining emissions from liquid e-cigarettes as well.
Regarding pseudo-nicotine, management plans will be drawn up once toxicity research results are released within this year.
Professor Lim Min-kyung of Inha University said, "If non-tobacco products contained even trace amounts of carcinogens, people would avoid them," expressing hope that this will serve as an occasion to remind people once again of the harmful nature of tobacco.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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