Mercedes owner goes viral by using vape to test vehicle’s high-tech air filter

It’s known that vaping can negatively affect one’s health, but a viral moment shows just how bad it can be.

Sheldon Shuffield of Fort Worth, Texas, posted a video on his TikTok (@thisdadtiktoks) account in August to his more than 600,000 followers, which now has more than two million likes and 22 million views.

“Oh my God, I just got a fancy new Mercedes,” he began.

“So you want proof that steam is bad for you?”

Shuffield, who used to work in health care, explained that his Mercedes came with a HEPA filter that is “similar to what’s in the operating room,” he said in the video.

The filter is meant to clean the air entering the car to create a healthier environment.

Shuffield’s husband took a puff of his steam and dropped it on the floorboards.

As it exhaled the light plume of smoke, the filter’s internal numbers went through the roof, quickly changing from a “Good” rating of 1 PM2.5 (particulate matter), to an “Unhealthy” rating of 63, to a peak of “Very” . Unhealthy” rating of 200, before the machine started filtering lean air.

“All of you!” Shuffield shouted in response.

“You’re blowing it with your kids in the car!”

“I am very grateful for my car [has] that feature, because it just opened my eyes… it was just a little bit of steam smoke in my car.”

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Shuffield claimed that fumes from road vehicles register lower damage ratings than vapor smoke.

“I’m shocked that so many people unwittingly inhale this throughout the day,” he said.

“It just blows my mind.”

In a statement sent to Fox News Digital, a Mercedes spokesperson said the company offers the optional HEPA filter as part of its “Energizing Air Control Plus” feature on the Mercedes EQS and EQE Sedan and SUV models.

“This advanced filtration system significantly improves air quality by capturing fine dust, micro-particles and pollen and reducing harmful pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides,” the spokesperson noted.

“With a filtration efficiency exceeding 99.65% for particles as small as PM 0.3, it provides a clean and safe environment inside the vehicle, comparable to clean rooms and operating rooms.”

Theodore Wagener, PhD, director of the Center for Tobacco Research and co-director of the Cancer Control Program at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, told Fox News Digital that the video is “not at all surprising.”

“The machine is measuring PM2.5 (aka particles 2.5 microns in diameter or less), which is small enough to travel deep into the lungs,” the expert said.

“While traditional cigarettes produce … a greater amount of harmful chemicals than e-cigarettes, e-cigarettes … should not be considered safe, but rather considered less harmful than cigarettes.”

The benefit of having a HEPA filter in a vehicle, Wagener said, is that it provides “real-time feedback of the impact of your behaviors.”

“This type of information can increase motivation to stop smoking and improve overall health,” he added.

Shuffield’s video proves that “vaping is not good,” Wagener said.

“It should only be used as a harm reduction method for smokers who have been unable to quit using FDA-approved products such as nicotine lozenges and patches,” he said.

“For smokers, switching completely to vaping nicotine is likely to have a health benefit, but the ultimate goal should be to completely stop using all nicotine.”

Shuffield and his husband have “cut back” on their vaping habits, he said, as they aim to be good role models for their children – a son, 7, and a daughter, 14.

For people who are addicted to vaping, Shuffield’s advice is to “put it down and get away from it as much as you can.”

“Don’t let it stick to your hand like a cell phone.”