People around the area have reported severe respiratory and other problems after using e-cigarette and vape products, and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul is warning people to avoid using them.
People in Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Kane, Kendall, Lake, McHenry and Will counties are among those to report problems after e-cigarette or vape use, according to a news release from Raoul’s office. The release cites the Illinois Department of Public Health. Cases involve individuals between the ages of 17 and 38 and have resulted in one fatality.
According to Raoul, symptoms experienced by individuals who have become ill range from difficulty breathing, coughing and fatigue, to vomiting and diarrhea. People who have been hospitalized reported that their symptoms worsened in the days or weeks after using e-cigarettes or vape products. Raoul encourages anyone experiencing such symptoms after using e-cigarette products – even if symptoms do not take place instantaneously – to seek immediate medical attention.
According to the IDPH, the aerosol created by e-cigarettes can contain harmful ingredients. The Food and Drug Administration has also reported that some people who use e-cigarettes – primarily youth and young adults – have experienced seizures, which are a potential side effect of nicotine toxicity.
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that many patients, including some in Illinois, reported vaping products containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, before experiencing symptoms. Although the reported illnesses have not been linked to any particular e-cigarette or vape product, no e-cigarette or vape product has been conclusively eliminated as a potential source of the illnesses, the release states.
Raoul is encouraging Illinoisans who became ill after using e-cigarettes or vape products to file complaints on his on his website or by calling a Consumer Fraud Hotline at 800-386-5438.
Source: The Daily Chronicle
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