Every day, it appears some people just want to keep projecting fear upon vapers but bring up several arguments on vaping effects on people’s health. Well, yeah, vapes are not 100% healthy—all vapers already know that—but at the same time, these vapes are very much healthier than traditional cigarettes. So, the argument today is, “Can you get popcorn lung from vaping?” Okay, we will explain that in detail.
Popcorn lung, clinically known as bronchiolitis obliterans, is a very rare health condition that happens in the lungs, making it difficult for the diagnosed patient to breathe freely. In this article, we will look into the causes of popcorn lung and how it can be treated.
What Exactly is Popcorn Lung?
You know how popcorn looks when done? Yeah, that’s how bronchiolitis obliterans form inside your lungs, hence the name. So, popcorn lung, or bronchiolitis obliterans, is a rare but serious obstructive lung disease characterized by scarring and inflammation of the bronchioles—the smallest airways of the lung.
The first occurrence of this health condition—and the coining of its name “popcorn lung”—dates back to the early 2000s, when multiple workers at a microwave-popcorn plant developed severe airway damage following chronic inhalation of diacetyl, which a buttery flavoring agent used in food manufacturing and popcorn making.
Scientifically, constrictive bronchiolitis manifests as subepithelial fibrosis that narrows the bronchioles, leading to progressive airflow obstruction and gas exchange impairment. Unlike asthma or COPD, popcorn lung’s hallmark is its deceptive onset over weeks to months, often misdiagnosed until irreversible damage has occurred.
But popcorn lung is not common, not even to people who are heavy smokers or vapers—it’s a rare condition that can be caused by quite many triggers.
Can You Get Popcorn Lung from Vaping?
Let’s just say the answer is “YES” and “NO,” but please pay attention to the explanation.
It is “Yes” because a good number of vape e-liquids were tested to contain diacetyl “above lab thresholds,” and diacetyl happens to be one of the renowned triggers of popcorn lung. Then again, not all e-liquids have this compound in them, and also, a good number of these e-liquids have it in moderately approved quantity.
The core of the debate centers on diacetyl—an alpha-diketone compound that delivers buttery flavor and aroma. In a pivotal toxicological screening, diacetyl was detected above lab thresholds in 39 out of 51 flavored e-liquids tested, with concentrations ranging up to 239µg per e-liquid sample. In parallel, 23 of those flavors contained 2,3-pentanedione, a structurally similar compound also implicated in popcorn lung triggers.
However, even with these scientific findings, to date, there have been no confirmed human cases of popcorn lung directly attributed to vaping—there goes the “NO” answer.
In Europe, the EU Tobacco Products Directive has since 2016 banned the inclusion of diacetyl in legal e-liquids, and this reduces the potential exposure of vapers to risks of popcorn lung. But then, we cannot downplay the fact that OTC DIY e-liquids may contain this compound, as they are not regulated.
How Do I Know If My Lungs Are Damaged from Vaping?
If your lungs are starting to get affected—from smoking, vaping, or other causes—the signs would be there. For example, vaping-induced lung injury could start from mild irritation to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The 2019–2020 vaping lung illness outbreak underscored how additives like vitamin E acetate can trigger severe pneumonitis. As of February 18, 2020, there were 2,807 confirmed hospitalizations and 68 deaths in the U.S. linked to illicit THC vaping products containing vitamin E acetate.
Typical symptoms of vaping-related lung injury include:
· Persistent cough and sputum production
· Shortness of breath disproportionate to activity level
· Chest pain or tightness
· Hypoxemia on pulse oximetry (<95% on room air)
· Unusual severe fever, fatigue, and weight loss
A Harvard analysis recommends a high index of suspicion for any vaper presenting with respiratory distress, especially if imaging reveals diffuse ground-glass opacities on CT. If you experience these red-flag symptoms—particularly after switching to a new flavor or vape device—seek immediate medical evaluation.
How Do You Know If You Got Popcorn Lung?
Bronchiolitis obliterans often masquerades as common respiratory conditions, delaying diagnosis until the irreversible scarring occurs. So, it’s almost impossible to know if you got popcorn lung until it actually occurs—its symptoms are similar to other curable mild and severe lung illnesses.
Regardless, if you start having issues breathing normally, have an incessant cough, or constantly feel a sharp pain in your lung region, you should seek medical help immediately. The licensed medic would research your medical history and exposure risks (query occupational or environmental exposures to diacetyl or related alpha-diketones), run multiple PFTs, and carry out a high-resolution CT scan.
Can You Recover from a Popcorn Lung?
Sadly, NO. Popcorn lung has no cure. As sad as it may sound, that’s it—the moment it materializes in your lungs, that’s it, you can only be placed on life-long medication and close monitoring to mitigate the symptoms and control your reactions. The only way to be treated for popcorn lung is not having it at all—so, the moment you start having signs of lung illness, you should take your treatment seriously, so that you can recover from it quickly, and not let it grow into popcorn lung.
In simple terms, only what could be down to popcorn lung are to halt progression, manage symptoms, and preserve remaining lung function through the following:
· Ceasing vaping, smoking, or any other thing that exposes the carrier to diacetyl, immediately.
· Pharmacotherapy (corticosteroids and macrolide antibiotics)
· Pulmonary rehabilitation programs
· Supplemental oxygen for resting hypoxemia.
· Lung transplant as the last resort
Longitudinal studies suggest that stabilization is achievable if interventions occur early, but the patients often endure chronic symptoms and require ongoing respiratory support.
Popcorn Lung Lifespan
You may not like this, but there’s no lifespan—there’s no amount of years or months it’d take for popcorn lung to get cured or heal by itself, even if you strictly feed on lung-friendly meals from the first day of your diagnosis. Yeah, it’s quite scary—the more reasons you should make sure to not develop the condition. Once diagnosed with popcorn lung (bronchiolitis obliterans), the patient will live with the illness until death.
Can You Live a Full Life With Lung Disease?
The truth is, how long you’ll live with a lung illness depends on the severity. Apparently, most people who got diagnosed early and started their treatments immediately would have the symptoms contained to a great extent, reducing the chronic pains that come from late discovery—such people could still possibly live a full life. Lung diseases such as popcorn lung or COPD can be traumatizing, make breathing difficult, and are generally painful to cope with.
How to Prevent Popcorn Lung from Vaping?
It’s all about being proactive and mindful of your habits. The suggestions below can help:
· Choose diacetyl-free products. One of the ways to ensure this is to not patronize OTC DIY e-liquid vendors.
· Choose your vape devices carefully, and be mindful of your vaping style, MTL (Mouth to Lung), and RDTL (Restricted Direct to Lung).
· Quit vaping, and maybe port to nicotine gums and pouches—those ones are even more safer to use than vapes and they deliver nicotine efficiently.
Conclusion
Oh, well. Bronchiolitis obliterans doesn’t particularly develop from vaping, but if you don’t choose your vapes and e-liquids carefully, you may overdose on diacetyl, found in some e-liquids, and that could cause popcorn lung, which is permanent and irreversible. The only cure for popcorn lung is transplantation, which is not easy to find.
The good thing is, to date, there is no traceable scientific proof of popcorn lung being directly caused by vaping; so you can go on and puff your clouds as always—just make sure to monitor your body systems for any unusual signs and engage a professional medic as early as possible. Hopefully, this article addresses all your concerns as regards popcorn lung disease and its relation to vaping.
