The true effects of smoking and vaping have been highlighted by a simulation that's doing the rounds online, which compares the two habits.
While neither is ideal, some believe that the viral video has settled the debate of what's worse between smoking and vaping.
The long-term side-effects of smoking cigarettes regularly have been outlined in previous studies as the NHS states: "Smoke from tobacco harms people who smoke and the people around them. There is no safe level of smoking or being exposed to smoke."
Health effects of vaping have also been explored, though they have not been around long enough for people to assess their effects in later life, with Cancer Research UK stating that there’s one clear difference: “E-cigarettes don't contain cancer-causing tobacco.”
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It's hard to kick a nicotine addiction when it comes down to it, with alternatives like Snus popping up in more recent times, but when it comes to the feeling of having something in your hand to inhale, what's worse - smoking or vaping?
YouTuber Chris Notap decided to put this face-off to the test with his own experiment into the matter, simulating your lungs when you vape for a month or puff on ciggies for a month.
He used two clear glass domes with a hole in the front, stuffing the inside with cotton wool.
The content creator noted after the experiment that 'there's only one thing that should be going in your lungs, and that's air'.
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Using a machine to simulate inhalation, he placed the vape and cigarette into the hole of the dome to simulate someone smoking, putting in the equivalent of a month's average, which he estimated as 600 cigarettes and 120ml of vape juice.
As the time lapse goes on, it's clear that the cigarette dome is leaving a brown residue on the cotton balls and the dome itself, while the vape seems to leave a white cloud, with the experiemne taking three days to complete.
But after the experiment, we can see what really happens on the inside of a smoker's lungs, with Chris taking the apparatus apart and emptying the cotton balls onto a white surface to reveal the brown, sticky residue.
More of this was caught on the dome itself, as he wiped the brown from the cotton balls onto kitchen paper, though the vaping dome was far different.
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Condensation was running down the sides, with the cotton balls leaving little to no marks on the paper when he wiped it down.
Chris also showed the tubes off, which exhaled the smoke, with the smoker's tube being brown and clogged up with tar, while the vaper's tube remained clear with slight discolouration from the substances.
You may think that this means there's a clear winner and choice to make, but the NHS says otherwise, stating: “While vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking, it is unlikely to be totally harmless.
“The healthiest option is not to smoke or vape. So, if you are vaping to quit smoking, you should aim to eventually stop vaping too.”
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One commenter wrote: "I’ve smoked way to long. Recently I’ve been cutting back and want to stop smoking. Now I WILL stop!! Now!!"
Another added: “I’m 39 years old and have smoked since I was 14, Sir you just scared some sense into me. Thank you!”
Others agreed with his comments on only air going into your lungs, with one thing for certain - neither one of smoking or vaping is good for you.
Joshua Nair