By Sean Murphy
Copyright irishmirror
Doctors have warned that vapes can warp teenage brains amid new findings that one in five teens are using the dangerous devices.
It comes as a new myth-busting guide to vaping risks for secondary school students is released ahead of World Lung Day next week. The Irish Thoracic Society, which produced the guide, says the latest findings show a need for all disposable vapes and flavours to be banned.
A Society spokesperson said: “The guide comes as latest research from Healthy Ireland shows e-cigarette usage is highest among younger people. Some 17% of 15 to 24-year-olds reported that they use vapes either daily or occasionally. Use is higher among males in this age group at 20%, compared with females at 15%.
The Society explained that vapes, also known as e-cigarettes, are battery-operated devices that heat a liquid made up of nicotine until it becomes a vapour or mist which is then inhaled.
Their spokesperson said: “Studies have found toxic and cancer-causing chemicals in the vapour of e-cigarettes, with one review finding that even non-nicotine e-cigarette liquids contained 243 unique chemicals, including known poisons and prohibited substances. Vapes have been linked to lung damage, asthma attacks and chronic cough, as well as to addiction, anxiety, memory and sleep problems.”
He added: “Vapes not useful in helping people to quit smoking. Research suggests that some people who buy e-cigarettes to quit smoking end up using both e-cigarettes and other tobacco products, and then struggling to quit both.”
Professor Des Cox, who is a paediatric respiratory medicine consultant at Children’s Health Ireland (CHI) Crumlin, warned that nicotine can cause permanent changes in a teenage brain.
He said: “We know from research that teenage vapers are three to five times more likely to take up tobacco smoking when compared with non-vapers. Indeed, the earlier that young people start vaping, the more likely that they are to have long-term heart and lung damage. It has also been linked to mental health problems, alcohol and marijuana use.
“Unfortunately, even brief exposure to nicotine can make it harder to learn and concentrate and can produce lasting changes in the teenage brain. We hope that, with this new guide, students will be much better informed when it comes to making personal decisions around vaping and what it means for their health.”
Irish Thoracic Society president Prof Marcus Kennedy warned that early intervention is essential to protect young people and said: “We know that flavours are among the reasons most cited by young people in being attracted to, and starting, vaping. They decrease the perception of harm and increase the take-up of e-cigarettes.
“We also know that the availability of disposable vapes has led to a significant rise in adolescent vaping. That’s why we’re calling on the Government to finalise and implement the updated Nicotine Inhaling Products Bill that will protect the health of young people.
“Early intervention programmes for young people are being provided across the world to prevent the uptake of vaping. We hope that this new guide will support that work and raise awareness about the risks of vaping. The aim is to empower students to make their own informed choices that protect their health and well-being now and into the future.”
The HSE provides advice on how to stop smoking on its quit.ie website and on its Freephone number 1800 201 203. World Lung Day is on Thursday, September 25, while the Society’s anti-vape guide is to be distributed to schools nationwide and is also available from the irishthoracicsociety.com website.
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