Photo / Bevan ConleyNicholas Jones is an investigative reporter at the New Zealand HeraldNew Zealand scientists are for the first time testing the 150 vaping products on the market, to check for nicotine levels and ethanol, and after illicit drugs were found in some liquids overseas. The study by ESR, the Institute of Environmental Science and Research, will check the wide variety of vaping liquid products sold in New Zealand. Scientists are developing a testing methodology, and will analyse liquids for nicotine levels, illicit drugs, ethanol (alcohol), colours, endotoxins, and tobacco-specific nitrosamines (a harmful chemical found in tobacco and tobacco smoke). The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States has previously linked THC-containing vaping products to lung illnesses in some users. An ESR spokesperson told the Herald on Sunday a study on some products in New Zealand had indicated quality control issues, including nicotine levels and the ratio of common vaping base materials.

Source: New Zealand Herald March 13, 2021 02:03 UTC