Urgent ‘popcorn lung’ warning to young vapers like Phoebe Burgess
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Bowral’s crisp, crisp air has taken on a cherry-like hue in recent months after Phoebe Burgess started smoking e-cigarettes.
The mum of two, 33, was seen on Tuesday holding a $30 cherry-pomegranate flavored vape as she stepped out for coffee in Sydney’s Bellevue Hill.
The ex-wife of NRL great Sam Burgess kept an IGET Bar vape, which contains 3,500 puffs per device, under her iPhone.
IGET Bar vapes are made in China and are illegal in Australia if they contain nicotine. Each device has the capacity for 7ml of 50mg nicotine e-liquid.
While some consider vaping to be a less harmful alternative to cigarettes, they are not without risks.
NSW Health Secretary Brad Hazzard launched an anti-vaping campaign in March after research showed an alarming number of teens were picking up the habit.
Bowral’s crisp, crisp air has taken on a cherry-like hue in recent months after Phoebe Burgess (pictured with an IGET vape on Tuesday) started smoking e-cigarettes. While some consider vaping to be a less harmful alternative to cigarettes, they are not without risks
The campaign warned young people about the risks and challenged the idea that vaping is okay just because it’s healthier than smoking cigarettes.
The Government and NSW Health are “very concerned about the impact of those vaping on young people’s lives, particularly on their lungs,” Mr Hazzard said.
Vaping damages the lungs of adults and is of greater importance for lung development in teens and children, he added.
The minister said at a parliamentary hearing that the thought of children taking over the habit was “appalling”.
The Get The Facts – Vaping Toolkit is aimed at students aged 14-17 and provides teachers, parents and carers with tools to start conversations about the dangers of vaping.
“We know that among many young people e-cigarettes or vaping are considered safe and certainly safer than cigarettes,” said NSW Acting Chief Health Officer Marianne Gale.
Some consider vapes to be harmless due to the combination of a sweet or fruity taste, attractive packaging and their ‘vapour’ is seen as water.
NSW Health Secretary Brad Hazzard launched an anti-vaping campaign in March after research found an alarming number of teens were picking up the habit (stock photo)
“It’s very important that young people and families understand that e-cigarettes are not safe,” said Dr Gale.
‘Evidence [and] experts are now telling us that these products are not safe and that there are a range of health harms associated with vaping.”
Vaping in young people can cause acute effects, including palpitations, chest pain, and throat and lung irritation.
Vapes can also contain nicotine and be highly addictive.
Nicotine has serious negative effects on the developing brain, as well as memory, mood and mental health.
Phoebe (pictured with ex-husband Sam Burgess in 2017) was spotted this week with an IGET Bar vape, which contains 3,500 puffs per device. IGET Bar vapes are made in China and are illegal in Australia if they contain nicotine
A variety of dangerous additives were also found in vaping, including nail polish, bug spray and detergents, said Dr. gale.
Someone who vapes is three times more likely to become a smoker.
Vaping has become extremely popular in recent years – especially among young Australians – because it doesn’t carry the same stigma and price tag as cigarettes.
In most convenience stores and tobacconists, vapes made in China can be bought for as little as $20, compared to a pack of cigarettes for $50.
Experts say that vaping can be particularly harmful to young people because it damages DNA, promotes tumors and can cause a number of respiratory problems.
One in three vapes sold in Australia contain illegal amounts of banned chemicals and can cause dangerous illnesses including ‘popcorn lung’
Banned levels of ingredients linked to harmful lung diseases, such as ‘popcorn lung’, have been found in nearly a third of vapes sold in Australia.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration found that 31 percent of the 214 e-cigarettes it analyzed had chemical concentrations that exceeded the legal limit.
Those substances include the additives vitamin E acetate and diacetyl, which have been widely associated with a rare condition called bronchiolitis obliterans, which damages the small airways in the lungs.
The disease is nicknamed “popcorn lung” because diacetyl used to be added to microwave popcorn as a dye.
Pictured is an X-ray showing the effects of ‘popcorn lung’ – which has been widely associated with vaping
The TGA also found that all 190 nicotine vape products it tested violated new labeling rules designed to warn customers of the potential dangers.
A spokesman for the government agency said the banned ingredients are known to cause lung damage in the form of bronchiolitis obliterans and EVALI.
EVALI – which stands for e-cigarette or vaping product-use-associated lung injury – is believed to be caused by vaping containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a psychoactive compound also found in marijuana, and vitamin E acetate.
Federal law introduced last October imposed minimum safety standards for nicotine vapors imported from abroad and made warning labels mandatory.
The law also made it illegal to buy nicotine vapes without a prescription.
According to the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), the new laws should reduce the risk of nicotine vaping in young adults, while also giving current smokers access to the smoking cessation products.
There are still two ways that prescription holders can obtain nicotine vaping products in Australia; from a pharmacy or import from foreign websites.
Prescriptions can only be written by one of the 80 authorized prescribers, or by a physician approved under the TGA’s Special Access Schedule B.
An authorized prescriber of nicotine vaporization products must be a primary care physician registered with the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
Despite the disapproval of vaping advocates, the new laws are supported by the Australian Council on Smoking and Health (ACOSH).
“ACOSH strongly supports any measure that will effectively halt the flow of illegal disposable e-cigarettes to Australia, which are being used by an increasing number of children and teenagers,” said Chief Executive Maurice Swanson.
“There is growing concern about the use of e-cigarettes among children and teenagers.”
A survey by the Australian Drug and Alcohol Foundation found that 20 percent of non-smokers had tried vaping and two-thirds who smoked cigarettes also used the disposable devices.
The alarming statistics come despite a study showing that vapes may contain paint, disinfectant, crude oil and even a drug used to kill fish.
The findings come from a study of the contents of 50 over-the-counter vapes conducted by Curtin University.
More than half of the vapes tested contained chemicals that are toxic to humans if inhaled repeatedly, and some have been linked to lung cancer.
Phoebe Burgess can be seen here during a recent appearance on The Morning Show
The investigation found that the liquids used in 50 over-the-counter vapes included eugenol — which is used to euthanize fish — petroleum, household disinfectant, cosmetics and paint.
Many have completely ‘unknown effects on respiratory health’.
The sale of nicotine-based e-cigarettes was banned in every Australian state from 1 October last year, with people only able to purchase the vapes if they have a doctor’s prescription.
But vape sellers are getting around the ban by selling the disposable devices on the black market.