Canada last week experienced its first known reported respiratory illness likely connected to vaping.
Media reported on Wednesday, Sept. 18 that, according to the Middlesex-London Health Unit (MLHU), a London, Ont.-area youth had been diagnosed with a severe condition linked to vaping products.
Until then, Health Canada had not reported any such ailments in the country.
“While we aren’t able to say conclusively that the respiratory illness that occurred in this young person was the result of vaping, there is no other identifiable cause in this case,” said Dr. Chris Mackie, medical officer of health and CEO at the MLHU, in a press release.
The youth was treated in intensive care and has since been sent home after recovering.
The headline follows on the heels of several similar instances in the U.S., where the most recent in a string of about half a dozen deaths attributed to vaping-related complications was reported on Tuesday, Sept. 17 when a 40-year-old individual in California died.
As a result, there has been growing public concern about the product, which remains relatively new to the market, with some advocating an outright ban.
But to put the situation in perspective, alcohol continues to hold the title of number 1 cause of substance abuse related deaths in hospitals, according to a CBC report dated June 13, 2019. Data drawn from the Canadian Institute for Health Information demonstrates that about 10 Canadians die in hospital every day from harm caused by substance abuse, with some 75 per cent of the cases attributed to alcohol.
Meanwhile, according to Statistics Canada, about 100 Canadians die every day of a smoking-related illness. Obesity-related deaths, while more difficult to track, also contribute to substantially shorter life expectancies.
In contrast, a few vaping related complications and even a handful of deaths pales in comparison. If the public response to vaping was proportional to other health problems, there would be calls to ban cigarettes, alcohol as well as junk and fast food — all of which we know are unhealthy, especially when consumed excessively.
To be clear, none of this is to defend the vaping industry, but rather merely to point out the disproportionate response from the public and even some politicians.
Furthermore, no one should be kidding themselves and considering vaping as a “healthy” alternative to smoking cigarettes, an argument that has been made. At best, vaping might be considered less harmful.
And the product should without question not be marketed with candy flavours that clearly appeal to younger consumers. What adult lines up waiting for cotton candy and bubblegum flavoured vape juice?
Also important to acknowledge is how there is a near complete void of statistical data on vaping devices and juices from which to confidently make any conclusions.
“We know very little about the long-term health effects associated with e-cigarettes,” said Mackie.
“But our findings so far are enough to convince us of the need to advise the public.”
However, bans are typically not the way to go, and will only create an unregulated and even more dangerous black market.
Such issues need to be studied extensively in order to develop sensible policy to inform the public so people can make healthier choices.
