Are E-cigarettes Really Dangerous?

Are E-cigarettes Really Dangerous?

More than twenty people—mostly young individuals—have been hospitalized due to severe respiratory difficulties caused by vaping.
 
NBC News reports that there have been 22 reported cases, with 4 in Minnesota, 12 in Wisconsin, and 6 in Illinois—of which, 14 individuals in Wisconsin were hospitalized due to respiratory issues just in early August.

What is even more concerning is that doctors are unclear about the exact cause of these hospitalizations. According to NBC News, it is still unknown what brands and models of e-cigarettes these individuals were using, nor where these devices and e-liquids were purchased.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (WDHS) stated in a press release in August that hospitalized patients exhibited symptoms such as shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, cough, nausea, and weight loss—NBC News noted that four hospitalized patients from Wisconsin initially thought they had pneumonia. The department indicated that while the severity of the patients varied, some were in very poor condition and even required respiratory assistance.

According to a report from Wisconsin news channel Fox 6 Now, a 25-year-old patient in Wisconsin suffered lung damage due to vaping and was placed in an induced coma by doctors. (However, this may also be due to the presence of tetrahydrocannabinol in the e-cigarette cartridge—this is the main psychoactive substance in cannabis; but this trend was not observed in other hospitalized cases in Wisconsin and Illinois.)

Dr. Ngozi Ezike, director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, wrote in a press release: "The number of teenagers vaping has surged in recent years." While researchers are still studying the short-term and long-term effects of vaping, recent hospitalizations underscore the necessity for parents to discuss e-cigarettes with their children, and both parents and children should understand the consequences and potential dangers of vaping.

Of course, the increase in vaping is not limited to the Midwest of the United States: according to a 2018 report from the Surgeon General, over 3.6 million American youth, including one-fifth of high school students and one-tenth of middle school students, regularly vape. Unfortunately, the impact of vaping on teenagers may be greater than on adults.