Puffing away your sleep: A scoping review of E-Smoking and sleep disruption

Background and aim: E-cigarettes are becoming increasingly popular, raising concerns about their effects on health, particularly sleep. However, the impact of e-cigarette use on sleep health is not well ex-plored. Therefore, the aim of this scoping review was to systematically map existing evidence on the impact of e-cigarette use on sleep health, identify research gaps, and provide recommendations for future studies. Methods: A scoping review of literature in PubMed and Web of Science was conducted using PRISMA guidelines. The focus was on studies that examined the impacts of e-cigarette use on sleep quality, duration, and disturbances. The review focused on identifying mechanisms and pathways linking e-cigarette use to sleep disruptions. After screening 1073 references, 48 studies met the inclusion criteria. Results: The evidence strongly suggests that e-cigarette use disrupts sleep quality and duration, primarily through the physiologi-cal effects of nicotine on the central nervous system. Users consistently report poorer sleep quality, shorter sleep duration, and increased disturbances, particularly in REM sleep, compared to non-users. Chronic nicotine exposure desensitizes receptors such as dopamine and norepinephrine, potentially exacerbating cognitive decline in users experiencing both nicotine exposure and sleep deprivation. Conclusion: E-cigarette use has significant adverse effects on sleep, warranting urgent attention. Recommendations include longitudinal research to establish causal relationships and to investigate population-specific effects, such as those observed in adolescents and individuals with preexisting sleep disorders. This review underscores the need for Comprehensive research and stricter regulations to mitigate this emerging public health issue. (www.actabiomedica.it).