Stories are cropping up in the media regarding vapers being hospitalised. Newspapers have listed off examples of seizures, being rendered unconscious, lungs failing and speak about a “vaping crisis”. It all sounds very serious, but is all is as it appears to be and can vaping put you in hospital?
Caveat
There are two things to bear in mind when considering newspaper coverage. Firstly, newspapers thrive on controversial subject matter and coverage because it drives shares, clicks, and website visits – the main way they make money in the new media era. Also, there is a well-funded operation that supplies negative stories about vaping to busy media editorial departments.
What are the dangers being spoken about?
The Times carried an article last week where it said a warning had been issued to parents because one school student became unconscious after suffering a seizure.
The Guardian recounts an anecdote of a 15yr old girl who has developed a “smoker’s cough”. The father goes on to say, “I reckon that, from what my daughter says, 90% of her school year vape.”
A story that is extremely at odds with the annual research produced by independent public health bodies in the UK.
The same piece goes on to cite an anonymous parent complaining they feel “abandoned by the government” and that “there’s very little data about vapes”.
Again, this is at odds with the most progressive and comprehensive vape legislation in the world and counter to the hundreds of published scientific studies published every month.
The Guardian goes on to list three other children who have experienced lung issues.
What causes these problems?
In exceptionally rare cases, someone can be allergic to one of the ingredients – in the same way that some people are allergic to eggs.
Only mentioned in passing, vitamin E acetate, the real culprit, garners a brief mention while the newspapers are content to tar vaping with the same brush and then express amazement that a growing number of people in the UK don’t understand the facts about vaping due to the volume of misinformation they read and hear.
Vitamin E Acetate?
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the psychoactive part of cannabis. Some THC vapes contain a substance known as vitamin E acetate which is added to thicken the liquid.
Normal vapes are water-based but vitamin E acetate is not soluble in water, so it is an oil-based additive to the THC products. Oil is dangerous to inhale – no legal e-liquid contains any oil products.
So, it appears that most if not all of the issues being documented are the result of an illegal activity and not the use of legal MHRA-registered vapes.
So, vaping is not dangerous?
All the UK’s public health bodies say that while not safe, vaping is at least 95% safer than smoking and suggest smokers struggling to quit give them a go instead. They all say that non-smokers should not take up vaping.
As the NHS says: “Nicotine vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking. It’s also one of the most effective tools for quitting smoking.”