New Outbreaks of Lung Injuries Associated with the Use of E-Cigarette, or Vaping, Products

Optimal Health Weekly Podcast

This week we discuss the Growing Outbreak of Lung Injury from E-Cigarettes and Vaping. The CDC said that vitamin E acetate may be behind the rise of deadly lung disease linked to vaping.

The symptoms are most common in men, especially younger men. The disease has put major e-cigarette companies under scrutiny. Lung injuries and deaths linked to the use of e-cigarettes, or vaping products, have continued to rise in recent years. The US has an estimated 10 million e-cigarette users in the country, but weekly updates on the CDC website make it clear that the group of people affected is very specific. The outbreak appears to be largely among younger men: 65% of patients are male and the average age is 22. Almost half (47%) are under 21. It's unknown if patients with a history of lung or heart disease are at higher risk for severe complications of influenza or other respiratory viral infections if they are infected simultaneously or after recovering from lung injury. Because symptoms are similar to those of flu and other respiratory illnesses including COPD, dry cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, fever, fatigue, and hazy spots on an X-ray. The term “popcorn lungs” is the term to describe bronchiolitis obliterans, a rare type of lung disease where the tiniest airways called bronchioles are inflamed.

Links from the Optimal Health Weekly show:

• https://tobacco.ucsf.edu/reduce-your-risk-serious-lung-disease-caused-corona-virus-quitting-smoking-and-vaping
• https://vapingfacts.health.nz/the-facts-of-vaping/risks-of-vaping/what-is-popcorn-lung.html
• https://stemcellthailand.org/therapies/idiopathic-pulmonary-fibrosis-ipf/
• https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/what-does-vaping-do-to-your-lungs
• https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50494871