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Tag: vaping epidemic

  • Doctors Use "TikTok" To Teach Teens About Vaping Dangers

    Doctors Use "TikTok" To Teach Teens About Vaping Dangers

    Medical officials are harnessing the power of social media to talk to teens about important health issues and to dispel medical myths.

    Figuring out a way to reach teens has been an ongoing issue for medical professionals, teachers and parents for decades. But now, a handful of doctors have found a very modern solution to raising awareness and educating teens and it’s a popular app called TikTok.

    What Is TikTok?

    The app, which Slate describes as a “social network for amateur music videos,” allows users to express themselves in 15-second clips that they can then upload for their followers to see.

    Dr. Rose Marie Leslie uses the app to inform teens about the health impact of e-cigarettes and other medical misinformation. For Dr. Leslie, it’s important to dispel harmful health myths which are becoming more widespread thanks to the Internet. 

    “I may not be the perfect health guru on social media,” Dr. Leslie told CNBC. “I don’t meditate or do yoga, I rarely get enough sleep, I’m not vegan and I don’t post inspirational quotes. But let me tell you, I have never and will never try to convince you that drinking celery juice cures cancer.”

    Dr. Leslie, who can be found on the app under @DrLeslie, practices family medicine at the University of Minnesota. Her TikTok videos have put a spotlight on vaping illnesses, birth control and she even busts medical myths for her 300,000 TikTok followers.

    Dr. Leslie is happy that her videos are making a positive impacts on teens’ lives. She regularly receives letters, emails and comments from teens thanking her for helping them understand the issues. She also receives a number of medical questions that some teens are afraid to ask the adults in their lives. 

    The Power Of Social Media

    Dr. Austin Chiang is also a big believer in the power of social media. He uses Twitter, Instagram and TikTok to help young doctors and to educate the public on how vaccines work. 

    Public health experts see the use of social media in medicine as an overall positive thing. 

    “I’ve heard the criticism that doctors and other medical professionals on social media are somehow less credible, or won’t be taken as seriously by their peers,” said Sherry Pagoto, a behavioral scientist and professor at the Department of Allied Health Sciences at the University of Connecticut. “But I think that school of thought is going to be a thing of the past.”

    Pagoto added that “it would be great for public health organizations to follow the lead of these medical professionals on TikTok.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Could Federal Legalization Solve The THC Vaping Illness Outbreak?

    Could Federal Legalization Solve The THC Vaping Illness Outbreak?

    Experts are starting to think that legalization may be the only way to find out the cause of the illnesses once and for all.

    Experts are increasingly looking toward federal decriminalization as a solution to the outbreak of severe lung illness and death across the U.S., according to a report by Vox.

    Close to 1,500 people have become ill and at least 33 have died from the mysterious illness, which began to suddenly crop up in March. As researchers look into the source of the problem, evidence has begun arising that most of these cases involve illicit, black market THC oil cartridges.

    Both national and statewide data have consistently shown that a strong majority of the patients of this lung illness had recently used a THC vaping product. The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that 78% of the reporting patients had used these products in the past while 92% of individuals from a similar survey in Utah had done so before getting sick.

    Because the THC vape market has largely shifted from relying on dried flower to oils, most of the patients who had vaped cannabis had done so with the oil form of the substance. 

    From Dried Herb To Processed Oils

    “What’s changed is that people used to vape dried herb and now you have more vaping of pre-processed manufactured oils, which involve different ingredients,” said University of Waterloo in Ontario public health researcher David Hammond.

    At the same time, data is showing that the majority of these products were obtained outside of legal sale. Most of them were “acquired from informal sources such as friends or illicit in-person and online dealers,” according to the CDC, and a New York Department of Health study found that the “vast majority” of their lung illness cases could be traced back to black market cartridges.

    Regulators Need To Catch Up

    THC products are often being developed faster than regulations can keep up with them, and authorities are having a hard time getting a handle on the black market that is likely responsible for the lung illnesses that have sickened so many.

    “Federal agencies exert little oversight, and regulation is left to a patchwork of inadequate state agencies,” said former FDA commissioner FDA Scott Gottlieb for the Wall Street Journal. “The weak state bodies sanction the adoption of unsafe practices such as vaping concentrates, while allowing an illegal market in cannabis to flourish.”

    With all this information coming together, experts are beginning to conclude that the most effective and reasonable path remaining is full federal cannabis legalization.

    “What federal legalization would do is allow for a more uniform and predictable and clear set of rules that would draw on the experience and expertise of the federal agencies in regulating consumer markets,” said Northwestern University professor Leo Beletsky.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Why's It Easier To Buy Marijuana Vape Pens Than To Research Them?

    Why's It Easier To Buy Marijuana Vape Pens Than To Research Them?

    “I can buy a vape device around the corner, but I can’t bring it into the lab and test it.”

    About one-third of the legal cannabis industry is based on vape products—but as more and more consumers began to vape cannabis, rather than smoke it, experts were unable to study the health effects because of federal bans on studying marijuana.

    “It’s disgraceful,” University of California, San Francisco professor and researcher Dr. Neal Benowitz told The New York Times. “I’m not able to take products we think are potentially harmful and do analysis. I can buy a vape device around the corner, but I can’t bring it into the lab and test it.”

    He Tried To Warn Congress

    Benowitz, a professor of medicine, studies vaping. This summer, before reports of widespread vaping-related became prevalent, Benowitz wrote to Congress expressing his concern about cannabis vapes. 

    “Very little is known about the safety or effects of vaped cannabis oil,” he wrote. He continued, warning that ingredients in the oils “could have harmful, toxic effect on users, including the potential for causing and/or promoting cancer and lung disease.”

    Vaping-related illnesses have killed 33 people around the country. 

    Even those who are in favor of vaping cannabis recognize that there are many unknowns about vapes. As president of the board of the United Cannabis Business Association, Jerred Kiloh represents 165 California dispensaries, including those that sell legal cannabis vape products. 

    “There’s a glaring gap in trying to understand this product,” Kiloh said. 

    Black Market Weed Vape Pens Are An Open Secret

    Kiloh pointed out that regulated vape pens cost about $55, but people can buy a black market pen with a comparable amount of THC for as little as $25. Investigators say that most of the vaping injury victims have used black market pens. The federal government has warned that people should stop using THC vape products.

    “We don’t know what the chemical composition is, and we especially don’t know what the chemical composition is once it’s been combined, heated and inhaled,” Kiloh said.  

    Users Discuss Why They’ll Continue To Vape

    Despite the risk, some people, like Cynthia Valdivia, 34, are still using vape pens. “There’s someone behind the brand and they don’t want to kill people. They want their money.”

    Another customer, who is 35, said that he prefers vaping because they are inconspicuous. “You could vape in a police station and no one would even know, not that you’d want to do that.” 

    Former FDA tobacco official Eric N. Lindblom said that for a long time there was no interest in regulating the vaping industry. Now, there is.

    “Only now that we have this special, extra weird mystery crisis with the disease and deaths is there now interest in doing something.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Juul Suspends Advertising, CEO Steps Down

    Juul Suspends Advertising, CEO Steps Down

    Juul’s new CEO says the company is at a crossroads. 

    The vaping company Juul Labs will suspend all advertising in the United States, accept a ban on flavored e-cigarette products and make other major changes amid public outcry and health concerns about the use of electronic cigarettes, particularly among teens. 

    It’s Over For Flavored Vaping Products

    Juul released a statement on Wednesday (Sept. 25) saying that it will not fight a federal ban on flavored vaping products and that it will stop advertising its products immediately. In addition, CEO Kevin Burns is stepping down and will be replaced by KC Crosthwaite, former chief growth officer at Altria Group Inc.

    Altria, which owns Philip Morris USA, is one of the biggest tobacco companies in the nation. Altria has a 35% stake in Juul, which it bought for $12.8 billion last December. 

    In his first statement as CEO, Crosthwaite said that Juul is at a crossroads. 

    “I have long believed in a future where adult smokers overwhelmingly choose alternative products like JUUL. That has been this company’s mission since it was founded, and it has taken great strides in that direction,” he said. “Unfortunately, today that future is at risk due to unacceptable levels of youth usage and eroding public confidence in our industry. Against that backdrop, we must strive to work with regulators, policymakers and other stakeholders, and earn the trust of the societies in which we operate. That includes inviting an open dialogue, listening to others and being responsive to their concerns.”

    No More Ads

    Effective immediately, the company will be “suspending all broadcast, print and digital product advertising in the U.S.” and “Refraining from lobbying the Administration on its draft guidance and committing to fully support and comply with the final policy when effective” the statement said.

    In the statement, the company said that it has already taken steps to combat underage use of its products. 

    “JUUL Labs has strongly advocated for Tobacco 21 (T21) laws, stopped the sale of non-tobacco and non-menthol-based flavored JUULpods to all of its traditional retail store partners, enhanced its online age verification, discontinued its U.S.-based Facebook and Instagram accounts and works to remove inappropriate social media content generated by others on those platforms,” the statement said. “The company also intensified efforts to combat illegal and potentially dangerous counterfeit and compatible products. Most recently, JUUL Labs started deploying technology at retail stores that automatically restricts the sale of JUUL products until a government-issued ID is electronically scanned to verify age and ID validity, exceeding the standards in place for other tobacco products and alcohol.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Massachusetts Temporarily Bans Vape Sales

    Massachusetts Temporarily Bans Vape Sales

    Critics fear the ban will push people to use black market vaping products.

    The state of Massachusetts has declared an emergency four-month ban on the sale of all vaping products, amid increasing reports of vape-related illnesses around the country. 

    “One of the experts said that, ‘We don’t have time to wait. People are getting sick and the time to act is now.’ I couldn’t agree more,” Governor Charlie Baker said, according to The Boston Globe.

    The ban was approved Tuesday (Sept. 24) and is the strictest policy that has been adopted so far in the U.S. The ban covers flavored and unflavored vaping products, and extends to ban online and retail sales as well.

    Other States Taking Similar Measures

    New York banned flavored vaping products last week, and Michigan took similar steps earlier this month. The Massachusetts ban covers all vape products, including tobacco-flavored products, similar to San Francisco, which enacted a ban on all vape products in June.

    “The use of e-cigarettes and marijuana vaping products is exploding, and we are seeing reports of serious lung illnesses, particularly in our young people,” Baker said at a press conference, according to the Associated Press.

    Michael Seilback, assistant vice president for state public policy of the American Lung Association, called on the feds to take action, something the Trump administration has promised to do. 

    “From our perspective, it’s the absence of strong federal action by the FDA that is forcing states to have to make choices like this on how they are going to protect children and adults from the public health emergency of e-cigarettes,” said Seilback. 

    Critics React

    Still, people who sell vapes said that an across-the-board ban is an overreach. 

    “There are clearly some issues there. The question is, what’s the problem? Is it the product being sold on the shelves by companies like Juul, or is it the off-brand stuff coming from other countries and sold on the internet?” said Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts. “I hope we can all work together and find out what is the problem and find a solution soon.”

    Geoffrey Yalenezian is the COO of a chain of vape shops in Massachusetts. He said he was shocked by the ban. 

    “My chin hit the floor,” he said, adding that the ban is “not changing or stopping anything. He’s taking a stance. His stance is I don’t really care about small businesses in Massachusetts.”

    Shaleen Title, who sits on Massachusetts’ Cannabis Control Commission, is concerned that the ban will push people to use black market vapes, which are potentially even more dangerous. 

    “This is a terrible decision. Purposely pushing people into the illicit market—precisely where the dangerous products are—goes against every principle of public health and harm reduction,” she wrote on Twitter. “It is dangerous, short-sighted, and undermines the benefits of legal regulation.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Vaping Death Toll Rises To Nine

    Vaping Death Toll Rises To Nine

    The Kansas resident, who was a new e-cigarette user, had an underlying health condition. 

    A second Kansas resident has died from a vaping-related illness, bringing the national death toll to at least nine as of Wednesday (Sept. 25). 

    The most recent victim was a man older than 50. He had an underlying health condition, according to information provided by the state’s Department of Health and Environment (KDHE). 

    “Today, I am saddened to announce the death of a second Kansan in association with this outbreak,” Governor Laura Kelly said in a news release. “Dr. Lee Norman and his team with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment are working tirelessly with other states and organizations to gather facts on e-cigarettes and its effects. We are coordinating a response to combat this epidemic, so that families can avoid such tragic outcomes.”

    New Users Are Affected Too

    The man was reportedly a new vape pen user. 

    “The patient had recently begun using e-cigarettes prior to hospitalization,” said state epidemiologist Dr. Farah Ahmed.

    The information on vaping-related illness in Kansas shows how widespread the issue is. The other death in the state was of a woman, also over 50, who also had underlying health issues.

    However, of the nine confirmed cases of vape-related deaths in the country, the victims have ranged in age from 17-67. They’ve included five men and four women. The products linked to the illnesses have contained tobacco, THC, CBD or a combination of these. 

    “E-cigarettes are unregulated, which means that we don’t know what’s in them,” said Norman, the secretary of KDHE. “And, of great concern to me, is that in the midst of all these illnesses being reported, the amount of young people using them is significant.”

    Youth Vaping Epidemic

    Parents must be aware that even though their children aren’t smoking traditional cigarettes, they could be vaping, officials say.  

    “Most teens who vape have never smoked cigarettes. Vaping is how they are initiating inhaling things into their lungs. We must work diligently and swiftly in addressing this public health crisis,” Norman said. 

    The state reports that 10.6% of high schoolers and 4.6% of adults use vaping products. All of them could be at risk, since it’s unknown what is causing vape-related illnesses. 

    “The Kansas Department of Health and Environment is urging people to stop vaping while this national investigation is underway,” said Ahmed.

    Norman said it’s important that everyone be aware of the risks of vaping, especially while vape pens remain widely available. 

    “Until [new] rules and regulations go into effect, education is our best defense,” he said. “Talk to your kids. Talk to your grandkids. Keep talking about these issues.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Schools, Parents See Spike In Problematic Behavior Due To Vaping 

    Schools, Parents See Spike In Problematic Behavior Due To Vaping 

    Some schools have taken doors off bathrooms to limit the likelihood of students vaping in them. 

    As a high school freshman, Kristin Beauparlant began noticing changes in her son, Cade. During hockey games, he began to tire more easily, often having coughing fits. But Kristin says the onset of anxiety and mood swings was what really concerned her. 

    Over the next three years, the Washington Post reports, the Beauparlants eventually identified the problem: Cade had become reliant on nicotine via Juul, a type of e-cigarette resembling a USB drive. 

    According to the Post, the rise of e-cigarettes has sparked concern for young users, as pediatricians say they are seeing teens “who behave less like tobacco users and more like patients with [substance use] disorders.”

    Health Harms

    In addition to behavioral changes, nicotine use can lead to nicotine toxicity, as well as respiratory issues. In fact, Beauparlant was diagnosed with restrictive lung disease due to vaping. Beauparlant’s family is one of the few to try suing e-cigarette companies. Cade’s mother hopes it will lead Juul to fund treatment programs. 

    “We were thinking about vapes just like we thought about cigarettes,” Sharon Levy, director of the Adolescent Substance Use and Addiction Program at Boston Children’s Hospital, tells the Post. “Over time we realized no, no. This is something really different.”

    One potential reason for the teen behavior associated with e-cigarettes like Juul is their design which allows for greater intake of nicotine than normal cigarettes. 

    “With the Juuls, kids are able to get a much higher dose of nicotine—and dose matters,” Levy said. “These kids have behaviors that we often see in patients who have opioid or marijuana addiction, but we didn’t typically see with kids who developed addiction to traditional tobacco cigarettes.”

    In response, Juul has claimed their products are designed for adult use and claims that studies have shown nicotine from their devices to be absorbed more slowly than nicotine from cigarettes. 

    According to Jonathan Winickoff, pediatrician and researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital with a specialization in tobacco cessation, products proven to help adults quit tobacco may not have the same effect on teens. 

    “We have millions of kids now, millions of adolescents who are using mostly Juul—and in some cases other devices—who are unable to quit,” Winickoff tells the Post. “It’s something we don’t have the infrastructure to deal with.”

    Schools Take Action

    The use of e-cigarettes has become especially problematic in schools. Some schools have even turned to forbidding the use of USB drives since they look like Juuls. Others have taken doors off bathrooms to limit the likelihood of vaping in them. 

    Once Beauparlant’s son was caught vaping, the athlete was no longer allowed to play hockey. This took away any chance of playing in college as well. But after treatment from Winickoff, Kristin Beauparlant says she began to see her son return. 

    “We kind of lost four years of Cade to this addiction,” she told the Post. She adds that now that Cade isn’t vaping daily, “He just seems like a different kid. You can’t help but say there’s a correlation.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Teens Hospitalized For Vaping-Related Breathing Problems 

    Teens Hospitalized For Vaping-Related Breathing Problems 

    The teens were experiencing shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea and diarrhea, among other symptoms.

    Eight teenagers in Wisconsin were hospitalized in July with breathing issues that doctors believe are related to their use of e-cigarettes, or vapes. 

    The teens were admitted to the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin, which held a press conference about the cases. The hospital’s chief medical officer, Dr. Michael Gutzeit, spoke about the teens. 

    “We suspect that these injuries were caused by vaping,” he said, according to CNN Health.

    The teens were experiencing shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea and diarrhea, among other symptoms. When they underwent chest X-rays, doctors found that the teens had swollen and inflamed lungs. 

    “The severity of health condition has varied, with some patients needing assistance in order to breathe,” Gutzeit said. He noted that the teens are all improving, but the conditions were concerning given that vaping is so popular among young people. 

    Vaping Risks

    Many teenagers believe that vapes are relatively harmless. However, the “e-liquids” that is being vaporized contain nicotine, chemicals and sometimes heavy metals that can be harmful. Gutzeit said it is important that teenagers and their parents understand and talk about the risks of vaping. 

    “It’s very important for teens and parents to understand more about vaping. Talk to each other. Understand the risks of vaping,” he said.

    While teen cigarette use continues to decline, vaping is becoming more popular. Research shows that 20% of high schoolers and 5% of middle schoolers use e-cigarettes. The rate of vape use increased by more than 900% between 2011 and 2015, research has found. 

    Recently, the e-cigarette company Juul, which controls 70% of the U.S. market for e-cigarettes, hired a pediatrician and researcher as its executive medical officer. The company claimed that the appointment of Dr. Mark Rubinstein was a way to ensure that young people are not using vapes, but some are worried that the company has ulterior motives. 

    “Even if you believe in harm reduction, to go work for a tobacco company… to me goes against everything that anybody doing control should believe in,” Stanford University professor Bonnie Halpern-Felsher, who trained Rubinstein during his time at UCSF, told Kaiser Health News.

    Opponents of e-cigarettes say that since their popularity has been rising so quickly, it’s imperative that the public understand the health risks of vapes, particularly for young people. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Juul's Popularity On Instagram Explored In New Study

    Juul's Popularity On Instagram Explored In New Study

    Researchers uncovered nearly 15,000 Instagram posts related to Juul, all of which were posted over a three-month period in 2018.

    Thousands of posts about the e-cigarette brand Juul appeared on Instagram in just a three-month period in 2018, and more than half were focused on cultures or lifestyles related to young people.

    Those are among the findings in a new study in the online journal Tobacco Control, which, as UPI noted, also included posts comprised of content that promoted means of purchasing Juul-related products at a reduced cost.

    Spokesperson: Juul Is Cutting Back On Digital Marketing

    A spokesperson for Juul said that the company itself only issued eight posts on Instagram during that three-month period, and has actively sought to reduce digital marketing and social media listings, which medical specialists have claimed can contribute to the appeal of such products among young people.

    The study—conducted by researchers from the non-profit public health organization Truth Initiative, as well as New York University, the University of Chicago and Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health—looked at discussions of Juul and its products on social media by using hashtag-based keyword queries to collect posts about the e-cigarette brand.

    They uncovered nearly 15,000 Instagram posts related to Juul, all of which were posted between March and May of 2018. More than half of the posts (55%) contained what UPI described as “youth-related content”—memes, cartoon images and celebrity references, and using Juul products at home, school or other places that were likely to be frequented by teenagers.

    Another 57% of the posts also mentioned or specifically highlighted using Juul with family or friends during social activities, while approximately one in 10 also mentioned the addictive properties of nicotine, albeit in a “fun light,” as UPI said.

    Juul Deactivates Facebook, Instagram

    Lindsay Andrews, a spokesperson for Juul Labs, said that six of the company’s eight Instagram posts in the time period covered in the study were testimonials from former adult smokers.

    Andrews also said that in November 2018, the company deleted its Facebook and Instagram accounts, removed thousands of social media listings by third parties—including more than 25,000 individual Instagram posts—and limited its Twitter usage to non-promotional items like press releases. 

    But some health specialists remain skeptical of these efforts. Dr. Len Horovitz, a pulmonary specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City said, “Every young person has Instagram, and that’s how they share information. The actual industry doesn’t have to do anything but let the people using the device share their insights, and advice and encouragement.”

    Study senior researcher Elizabeth Hair, who is also the senior vice president of Truth Initiative’s Schroeder Institute, said that stricter regulation on social media could help to stem the tide of posts she and her co-authors uncovered.

    “If we can stop the promotional pieces of it, I think that will help stem a lot of it,” she said. “A lot of this content was from companies that were selling the product and had these promotional aspects to it.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • San Francisco May Become First US City To Ban E-Cigarettes

    San Francisco May Become First US City To Ban E-Cigarettes

    San Francisco is one vote away from officially putting a “moratorium” on e-cig sales.

    San Francisco is on track to becoming the first city in the United States to effectively ban e-cigarettes—amid rising concern that youth vaping has reached “epidemic” levels.

    The city’s Board of Supervisors approved a measure that would prohibit sales of electronic cigarettes by a unanimous vote, and will need a second vote to make it official.

    “We spent the ‘90s battling Big Tobacco, and now we see its new form in e-cigarettes,” said supervisor Shamann Walton, who voiced concern over the role of e-cigarettes in increasing “nicotine addiction for middle school children [and] high school students.”

    City officials prefer to call it a “moratorium” on sales instead of a ban—put in place until there is approval by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to local reporter Ali Wolf.

    Though the FDA has been very vocal about the concerning rise of vaping among youth, City Attorney Dennis Herrera said that until the agency acts, “it’s unfortunately falling to states and localities to step into the breach.” Herrera said that young people “have almost indiscriminate access to a product that shouldn’t even be on the market.”

    Youth vaping has reached “epidemic” levels, said former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb.

    “We didn’t predict what I now believe is an epidemic of e-cigarette use among teenagers,” said Gottlieb in a September 2018 statement. “I use the word epidemic with great care. E-cigs have become an almost ubiquitous—and dangerous—trend among teens. The disturbing and accelerating trajectory of use we’re seeing in youth, and the resulting path to addiction, must end.”

    He continued, “The FDA won’t tolerate a whole generation of young people becoming addicted to nicotine as a tradeoff for enabling adults to have unfettered access to these same products.”

    Another proposal endorsed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors would ban the manufacturing of e-cigarettes on city property.

    One Nebraska school district is taking on this “epidemic” by implementing random nicotine testing on some students this fall.

    “The skyrocketing growth of young people’s e-cigarette use over the past year threatens to erase progress made in reducing youth tobacco use,” said CDC Director Robert R. Redfield. “It’s putting a new generation at risk for nicotine addiction.”

    View the original article at thefix.com