E-Cigarettes Effects On Children

“9-1-1. What is [the] emergency?” This is a response that no one wants to hear on the other side of the phone line. Unfortunately, more and more parents in various places in the United States are making calls just like these. Why? Their kids are being poisoned by e-cigarettes due to an increase in the use of products. There has already been “at least 1 child death reported from unintentional exposure to a nicotine-containing ENDS (e-cigarette) solution” (Walley 1018). These poisonings will continue because the products don’t have to be childproof and come in fruit, candy, and other flavors specifically targeting young children (CDC). Calls regarding poisonings from e-cigarette liquids have risen from 1 per month to 215 a month in just four
The e-cigarette liquid comes in a variety of flavors and the devices can come in different forms from “cigars and pipes [to] pens or USB memory sticks” (NIDA et al). “E-cigarettes first appeared in the U.S. market designed to help tobacco addicts wean themselves from smoking [also known as cessation]” (Raloff). While some people think that these products really help with smoking cessation, it is still hard to tell if e-cigarettes are really helping the problem of nicotine addiction or further aggravating the issue (NIDA et al). The FDA has been trying to regulate these products but are running into roadblocks; “e-cigarettes are not currently marketed as tobacco products or as devices having a therapeutic purpose” thus making it harder to place rules on the products. With limited regulations on e-cigarette cartridges and the liquids used therein, children and young teenagers are becoming attacked by these products with little protection from
Rapidly increasing rates of use among teenagers is creating worry in parents and in pediatricians. The chemicals contained therein such as nicotine, formaldehyde and diethylene glycol are dangerous substances that can cause poisonings and other adverse effects in exposed humans. So although, “the emissions from e-cigarettes have been publicized as ‘harmless water vapor,’ accumulating evidence demonstrates that the vapor inhaled into the user’s lungs does contain numerous known toxins and carcinogens such as formaldehyde and tobacco- specific nitrosamines (carcinogenic substances)” (Pros and Cons of E-cigarette Regulations