The e-cigarette is an epidemic in the United States and there have been five deaths

US health authorities have announced the death of five people, including three last Friday, following e-cigarettes, a practice that is prohibited for their risks.

The last three reported deaths were recorded in Indiana, Los Angeles (California) and Minnesota, the other two deaths in Oregon and Illinois.

Health Commissioner of Indiana, Kristine Box, said in a statement that "the tragic loss of a patient and the increasing number of vaping-related injuries are warnings that we can not ignore" .

"We know," he added, "that these products usually contain nicotine, which is highly addictive."

This news coincides with the publication of an article in the New England Journal of Medicine in which a group of researchers from the University of Utah Health identified a feature until then unknown. respiratory disease badociated with vaping.

Michigan Governor, Democrat Gretchen Whitmer, this week banned the sale of electronic cigarettes, making the state the first to sell these products.

Electronic cigarettes are devices that use batteries that heat liquids with nicotine to generate a spray that users inhale. The products used are presented in pleasant aromas, from watermelon to the exotic "vomit of the unicorn", which release sweet fruits and vapors.

According to scientists in Utah, patients with a type of respiratory disease that has appeared in many parts of the country in recent months and who use electronic cigarettes have immune cells in the lungs with small drops oily called macrophages loaded with lipids. .

Macrophages accumulate on infection sites and "these are cells that stand out very well and that we do not see often," said Scott Aberegg, lead author of the study. "And that led us to ask if they are there to eliminate the waste introduced into the lungs by vaping."

"Although it's too early to be sure, these macrophages can be helpful in confirming or reversing this disease," he added. "They can help us understand what causes this disease."

Pulmonary scans from patients with vape disease show what severe viral or bacterial pneumonia looks like, but tests to confirm these diseases give negative results.

The diagnoses were based on the exclusion of other known causes of similar respiratory conditions, but taking into account the information that the patient has a history of smoke consumption by a vaporizer .

The American Vaporizer Association, which promotes electronic cigarettes to help smokers quit traditional cigarettes, denounced Whitmer's decision and said it would support any lawsuit aimed at canceling it.

These sprays are sold without limit of age and are offered with aromas such as fruit juices, sweets and chewing gums.

"E-cigarettes are considered tobacco products because they contain mainly nicotine, which comes from tobacco," according to the CDC.

Other ingredients contained in the liquid of these cigarettes include ultrafine particles that can reach the lungs, flavoring compounds such as diacetyl, a chemical substance related to serious lung diseases, and heavy metals such as nickel, tin and iron. lead.

Youth

The number of boys using electronic cigarettes in the United States increased by 1.5 million last year. In other words, in 2018, 4.9 million high school students and university universes fled.

"The rapid increase in alcohol consumption among teens is even more worrisome, in part because of evidence that a young man who tests an electronic cigarette is more likely to smoke later." ", they warned in Washington.

"It's then the new nightmare," they said. "For several reasons, one because we do not know in the long term what is happening with this steam that is being sucked in. Two, according to the figures presented at the Washington summit, 30% of young Americans also consume the marijuana e-cigarettes. "Or any other type of liquid that nobody knows what it is. Liquids brought from abroad or homemade without control or label indicating what is being done. 40% of young people admit that they use it because their friends use it. And a little over 30% use it for flavors. Yes: sweet flavors. Steam with a taste of fruit, dessert, caramel … Very few people choose the taste of tobacco. "

In the state of Los Angeles, Barbara Ferrer, director of the local public health department, showed graphs indicating "the epidemic" in which the wave was forming among young people, knowing that two students from each university had confessed have tried.

He also said that growth among middle and high level students has been 21 and 12% over the last two years and that in the last year, 4.9 million young people had confessed to having tried . "We take this threat seriously and today we warn all Los Angeles residents of the use of these devices," he said.

It would work. Barbara Ferrer, director of health in Los Angeles, announcing the death of a resident Friday