Vaping FAQs

what do doctors have to say about vaping

by Alexandrine Nolan Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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Doctors said vaping can increase the risk and symptoms of more disease than the flu. Recent studies show vaping causes irritation and inflammation to the lungs, so potentially increasing the chance of people contracting any respiratory disease.

Many teens believe they're inhaling harmless water vapor. But it can actually contain high concentrations of nicotine as well as particles linked to lung disease and cancer. The doctors say vaping impacts young people in at least three key areas: the lungs, the heart and the brain.Feb 12, 2020

Full Answer

Should you ask your doctor if you vape?

As a younger pulmonologist aware of the popularity of vaping among teens and adolescents, he asks patients specifically not only whether they vape, but what they vape with, and even asks to see the product — but notes this isn’t common practice among the primary care doctors you see for your annual physical.

Should vaping be treated in the emergency department?

When patients show up to the emergency department in respiratory distress from vaping, it's challenging for physicians to treat them. This is due to the difficulty in correctly identifying what they inhaled, especially when they are intubated or unconscious. The length of time spent vaping can be much longer than smoking a standard cigarette.

Does vaping count as smoking?

Doctors typically haven’t told patients that vaping counts as smoking, or asked them specifically whether they vape, allowing the behavior to escape their notice.

What should you not do with a vaping device?

Do not modify or add any substances to a vaping device that are not intended by the manufacturer. Nicotine is the primary agent in both regular cigarettes and e-cigarettes, and it is highly addictive. It causes you to crave a smoke and suffer withdrawal symptoms if you ignore the craving. Nicotine is also a toxic substance.

How many people die from vaping?

How many high school seniors have tried vaping?

How many eighth graders have vaped?

How long do you have to report e-cigarette use?

Does the FDA report tobacco products?

Is the FDA regulating e-cigarettes?

Is e-cigarette use an epidemic?

See 4 more

About this website

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Doctor's warning about dangers of vaping - Mayo Clinic Health System

For the safety of our patients, staff and visitors, Mayo Clinic has strict masking policies in place. Anyone shown without a mask was either recorded prior to COVID-19 or recorded in a non-patient care area where social distancing and other safety protocols were followed.

Doctors Speak Out Against Vaping Outbreak - Addiction Center

Vaping Outbreak Statistics: Then And Now. ABC News covered the vaping outbreak in a recent article which surveyed the reaction of many doctors who responded to the vaping crisis in America. According to the CDC, there were 1,479 lung injuries cases due to e-cigarettes, or vape pens in October 2019. The findings were obtained from 49 states (all except for Alaska).

How to help a teenager who is vaping?

Encourage your teen to look into the warnings and media stories related to vaping, or reach out to his or her primary care provider with questions.

How to tell if a child is vaping?

Talk with your kids about the dangers of vaping, but also look for warning signs including: 1 Changes in emotions 2 Trouble sleeping 3 Scents of fruity odors on skin, breath and clothes 4 Strange cylinders, chargers or batteries lying around

Why is vaping so popular among teens?

First publicized as a safer alternative to smoking tobacco, vaping caught on because it didn't contain the carcinogens or tars found in most smoking tobacco products. Also, vaping was supposed to eliminate the dangers of secondhand smoke to those nearby.

How long does a vape last?

Did you know most cigarettes are smoked within two to five minutes? E-cigarettes on the other hand can last up to 20 minutes, delivering more nicotine and damaging chemicals to the lungs. In addition, some vaping mixtures can contain 20 times the nicotine that a single cigarette contains.

What is an e-cigarette?

E-cigarettes are battery-operated devices that heat a liquid solution — usually, but not always, containing nicotine — turning it into a vapor that can be inhaled . If the base nicotine mixture is not palatable, many flavors, such as mint, apple and others, can make vaping attractive, especially to adolescents.

Why is vaping so difficult?

This is due to the difficulty in correctly identifying what they inhaled, especially when they are intubated or unconscious.

Is vaping bad for teens?

Adolescents often feel that bad things happen to everyone else, but the risks associated with vaping are real. Many teens are taking things a step further, adding cannabis, CBD oils and other dangerous additives to vaping devices.

Do doctors ask if you smoke?

The rise of vaping has complicated matters, though. Doctors typically haven’t told patients that vaping counts as smoking, or asked them specifically whether they vape, allowing the behavior to escape their notice. But amid an outbreak of a lung illness apparently related to vaping — which has affected at least 530 and killed seven people in the US, per the Centers for Disease Control — it’s suddenly pretty important for us to be honest with our doctors about vaping.

Can vaping cause asthma?

Being upfront about your vaping habit can allow your doctor to inform you exactly about how it can affect your livelihood — including the less dire scenarios that can result, which are still pretty terrible, says Jamie Rutland, a pulmonary and critical care physician and professor at the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine. Even if it doesn’t end up giving you lung disease, vaping can cause a ton of inflammation in your airway, which may trigger an asthma attack or asthma exacerbation, according to Rutland. As a younger pulmonologist aware of the popularity of vaping among teens and adolescents, he asks patients specifically not only whether they vape, but what they vape with, and even asks to see the product — but notes this isn’t common practice among the primary care doctors you see for your annual physical.

How many people died from vaping in 2020?

As of Jan. 21, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed 60 deaths in patients with e-cigarette, or vaping, product use associated lung injury (EVALI).

Why are e-cigarettes so popular?

First, many teens believe that vaping is less harmful than smoking. Second, e-cigarettes have a lower per-use cost than traditional cigarettes.

How many chemicals are in e-cigarettes?

E-cigarettes heat nicotine (extracted from tobacco), flavorings and other chemicals to create an aerosol that you inhale. Regular tobacco cigarettes contain 7,000 chemicals, many of which are toxic. While we don’t know exactly what chemicals are in e-cigarettes, Blaha says “there’s almost no doubt that they expose you to fewer toxic chemicals than traditional cigarettes.”

How many people want to quit smoking?

If you have thought about trying to kick a smoking habit, you’re not alone. Nearly 7 of 10 smokers say they want to stop. Quitting smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health — smoking harms nearly every organ in your body, including your heart. Nearly one-third of deaths from heart disease are the result of smoking and secondhand smoke.

What is the best way to protect your health?

One of the best things you can do to protect and improve your health is to stay informed. Your Health is a FREE e-newsletter that serves as your smart, simple connection to the world-class expertise of Johns Hopkins.

Can you use THC in a vape?

The CDC recommends that people: Do not use THC-containing e-cigarette, or vaping, products. Avoid using informal sources, such as friends, family or online dealers to obtain a vaping device. Do not modify or add any substances to a vaping device that are not intended by the manufacturer.

Is e-cigarettes as addictive as heroin?

Both e-cigarettes and regular cigarettes contain nicotine, which research suggests may be as addictive as heroin and cocaine. What’s worse, says Blaha, many e-cigarette users get even more nicotine than they would from a tobacco product — you can buy extra-strength cartridges, which have a higher concentration of nicotine, or you can increase the e-cigarette’s voltage to get a greater hit of the substance.

Do pulmonologists ask patients to vape?

But in exam rooms, the illnesses have prompted a less-noticed but equally significant shift: Doctors, particularly pulmonologists, are asking patients whether they vape, even when they’re not presenting symptoms of the mysterious illness.

Is vaping a cause of illness?

But many did not consider making questions about vaping part of their standard protocol, even as the popularity of vaping has surged. Vaping wasn’t widely seen to be a cause of illness in healthy young people; it was also seen as an option for smokers trying to wean themselves off nicotine cigarettes.

EIHYPI Moved On ECF Veteran

Does their opinion matter? That's a question that I got in my head when I visited this doctor for the first time today. She asked me if I smoke cigarettes so I told her not for about 3 and a half years. Although I did mention after that I had been using electronic cigarettes for about 3 and a half years. Her reaction upset me very much.

Beamslider Vaping Master Verified Member ECF Veteran

I have spoken to my primary care doctor, a urologist and a cardiologist about my vaping. They all told me it was better than smoking.

EIHYPI Moved On ECF Veteran

I have spoken to my primary care doctor, a urologist and a cardiologist about my vaping. They all told me it was better than smoking.

Tonee N Vaping Master Verified Member ECF Veteran

I have spoken to my primary care doctor, a urologist and a cardiologist about my vaping. They all told me it was better than smoking.

ScottP Vaping Master Verified Member ECF Veteran

Threads with this same basic topic pop up all the time. Print out some of the real reports, like the ones from Dr. F, or the new one from Scotland where real Dr's are saying that vaping is 95% safer than smoking. Take these print outs with you when you go in again. Or better yet drop them off asap.

dennism Ultra Member ECF Veteran

After I told her 4 years no smoking but vaping for the same time, she gave me a high five.

ScottP Vaping Master Verified Member ECF Veteran

Unfortunately I didn't. She seemed the type that was a little hard headed. Plus it was my first time seeing her so I didn't want to possibly get into an argument with her about it. I definitely thought about educating her but my intuition told me it's not a good idea.

How many people die from vaping?

Vaping-related lung illnesses have struck hundreds, killing seven. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported 530 cases of lung injury in 38 states and one U.S. territory. The CDC has confirmed seven deaths in six states: California, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota and Oregon. While most of the patients affected used ...

How many high school seniors have tried vaping?

New research shows that 40.5% of high-school seniors have tried nicotine vaping, adding urgency to President Trump’s announcement that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will take action to ban the e-cigarette flavorings that have proved so attractive to teens and young adults. Meanwhile, federal health agencies are encouraging physicians to report detailed information on cases of vaping-associated lung illnesses. Here’s what doctors need to know.

How many eighth graders have vaped?

And while about 40% of 12th-graders have ever used a nicotine e-cigarette, 36.4% of 10th graders have vaped and 20.7% of eighth-graders have used an e-cigarette, says the survey, “Trends in Adolescent Vaping, 2017–2019,” published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

How long do you have to report e-cigarette use?

The CDC says physicians and other clinicians should “report cases of severe pulmonary disease of unclear etiology and a history of e-cigarette product use within the past 90 days to your state or local health department.” Learn more by reading the CDC’s health advisory, “ Severe Pulmonary Disease Associated with Using E-Cigarette Products .”

Does the FDA report tobacco products?

The FDA, meanwhile, has developed a portal to report safety problems with tobacco products. The agency says it wants reports from health professionals about tobacco products that are damaged, defective, contaminated, smell or taste wrong. The FDA reviews the reports to identify concerning trends.

Is the FDA regulating e-cigarettes?

The AMA has long called on the FDA “to regulate e-cigarettes, particularly banning flavors and marketing practices that enhance the appeal of e-cigarette products to youth, ” said Patrice A. Harris, MD, MA, the Association’s president.

Is e-cigarette use an epidemic?

The AMA House of Delegates has declared the skyrocketing use of e-cigarettes to be an “ urgent public health epidemic ” and urged the FDA to take action to address it. Dr. Harris also lauded recent actions by Michigan and New York to ban e-cigarette flavorings.

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