Health experts discuss harmful effects of vaping

STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Vaping has become a popular fad and is looked at as an alternative to smoking cigarettes.

However, like cigarettes, health experts said e-cigs can also cause severe illnesses to the lungs and respiratory system.

It’s what people are inhaling that health officials believe is causing the recent rash in lung illnesses.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, there have been 380 cases of lung illness reported from 36 states and one U.S. territory.

A total of seven deaths have been reported.

“Some of these vaping cases have been associated with pure nicotine use and in some cases it’s been associated with people vacillating or wandering between nicotine and THC, or the acting ingredient in marijuana,” said Eddie High, Registered Repository Therapist at OCH Regional Medical Center.

High said many people don’t know what’s inside the liquid that’s being vaped, which he believes is a major concern.

“Vaping has become so popular that you have a bunch of different people jumping on the bandwagon, manufacturing products, and manufacturing the liquids, and now you don’t know what you’re getting and there’s a danger in that,” expressed High.

Medical professionals believe this recent epidemic shows the negative effects vaping can cause.

“The problem is it’s effecting the lungs in ways that we haven’t seen before,” High explained. “The big problem with the youth is we’re getting a lot of fatty deposits in the lungs, and a problem with that is it impairs exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide and makes it very difficult to breathe.”

Early symptoms that someone may be coming down with a vaping related illness include becoming fatigued, experiencing shortness of breathe, or developing hoarseness in your throat, to name a few.

High admitted, many people ignore the early signs, but stresses it can be treated if it’s caught early.

However, once the illness develops, how quickly it begins to take a toll on someone’s body varies depending on the person.

“It depends on your lifestyle,” said High. “If you have a lifestyle that doesn’t require you to exert yourself, you don’t know that your lungs are becoming impaired because they haven’t reached their capacity for work. Until that day you do hit that wall, you can’t do anymore work, then all of a sudden you realize this isn’t right, something is wrong. Then you go see your doctor and discover, oh I have a problem.”

Smoking the e-cigarette directly isn’t the only way to become affected.

High said you can also come down with a lung related illness from simply inhaling secondhand smoke.

In light of the recent vamping related illnesses, High will speak with high school students at Starkville Academy next week to to bring attention to the potential dangers of using e-cigarettes.

If you come down with any of the symptoms, you’re encourage to immediately go see your doctor.