We’ve all seen it happen before. A study comes out with a flimsy, speculative conclusion and before all the sensible commentators get the chance to put it into context, it’s turned into scary headlines plastered across newspapers all over the world. Devoid of nuance and balance, it serves only to create and deepen the fear of vaping.

Corrections and clarifications come later, but by the time they gain any traction, it’s already too late. The “fact” has seeped its way into the public consciousness and becomes another reason people think vaping is “as bad as smoking,” which a disturbing number of people do.

This process happened again with a recent study about supposed DNA damage caused by e-cigarette vapor. The reports from the U.K. and U.S. declaring vaping as substantially safer than smoking have quickly been eclipsed by this recent piece of scaremongering nonsense.