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The Food and Drug Administration for the first time is seeking public input on proposed additions of potentially harmful chemicals found in e-cigarettes and vaping liquids.The agency on Monday began accepting comments on adding 19 toxicants to an established list of harmful ingredients found in tobacco products. “As our oversight and scientific knowledge of tobacco products has evolved, so too should our requirements for manufacturers and importers to provide information about the chemicals or chemical compounds in their products that cause or could cause harm to users and nonusers,” Acting FDACommissioner Ned Sharpless said in a statement. The agency’s 60-day period for accepting comment ends Oct. 4.Some of the FDA’s proposed toxicants include compounds that Yale and Duke university researchers found in Juul e-cigarette products that could irritate and damage the lungs.

Their study, published late last month, found that compounds in the liquid for e-cigarettes and vaporizers create irritating chemicals called acetals when heated, NPR reported.

Acetals are formed from alcohol and aldehydes, and are used to flavor foods and other commercial products. Hanno Erythropel, the study’s lead author and an associate research scientist for Yale University, told NPR little is known about the effects of aldehydes and acetals when inhaled through e-cigarettes and vaporizers, but some research has shown acetals can irritate airways and prompt an inflammatory response.

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