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According to the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission, a trend known as vaping, which involves smoking an aerosol using an e-cigarette or similar device, has become increasingly more popular among the youth. With a near 10 percent increase in the number of youth vapers in grades eighth, 10th and 12th since 2016, cases of vaping related illnesses have also begun to rise.
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On Oct. 21, Navajo County Public Health Nursing Supervisor Janelle Linn issued a statement warning the public of the potential dangers posed by the growing trend. Linn stated, “Vaping related illness is now a reportable condition and our local health department is currently investigating our first possible case in Navajo County. Vaping is exceptionally dangerous, and some cases of vaping related illnesses have ended in death. Even those who survive are almost always left with long term effects and suffer severe lung damage. Youth and young adults are of particular risk, as many of them vape.”
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In 2016, the Arizona Youth Survey revealed that one in seven eighth graders, one in five 10th graders and one in four 12th graders admitted to vaping. In 2018, the survey was done again and showed a decline in eighth graders who vaped but an increase in the number of 10th graders at one in four, and 12th graders at one in three who admitted to vaping.
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When vaping products became available it was advertised to be a safe alternative to smoking tobacco, which is what Linn attributes to so many of the youth adopting the habit. “They think it’s safe. There are teens who would never try cigarettes because they were taught that it was dangerous but tried vaping because they thought it was safe.” She added that the timeframe in which the subject starts vaping and when they experience adverse symptoms has been seen as early as a few weeks after starting to vape.
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Holbrook resident Jonah Whitman is 18 and has been vaping for two years. Whitman was asked why he thinks there have been so many issues with vaping and said he believes part of the issue with vaping is that those who chose to vape are not moderating their intake “People need to be able to regulate themselves.” The 18-year-old said that like himself, most of his friends vape for the social aspect or just to have something to do. “I have two friends who vape regularly but if we are all together, everyone will.” Whitman did say that he is not dependent on vaping.
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Currently there have been 12 reports of vaping related illnesses reported in Arizona with no deaths. According to Linn, the number of people reporting symptoms continues to grow at a rapid pace. Recent stats show that 49 states have reported vape related illness. Of 1,604 cases of vape related illness in the United States, 34 resulted in death across 24 states.
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Considering the climb in vaping related illnesses, Navajo County Public Health Services (NCPH) and the Arizona State Department of Health Services (AZDHS) have taken a proactive approach and have teamed up with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to narrow down the possibilities of what about this trend is causing so many health problems. According to Linn, the NCPH and AZDHS perform surveillance on the calls that report vaping related illnesses to gather details specific to each case to help them determine what could be causing the illnesses.
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As part of the process to identify the culprit, Linn explained that the patient is asked to surrender the device they use to vape with and provide information about the contents in it. So far, every device has contained a different substance such as components of marijuana including THC and/or CBD, or nicotine.
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When asked if the reported health issues are due to the use of counterfeit cartridges as so many people have claimed, Linn explained that there have been no consistencies in what types of devices are being collected saying that both black market and commercial cartridges have been involved. According to the supervisor, the FDA and CDC are investigating from multiple angles such as additives, flavors and extraction methods used but have yet to find a consistency there either.
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Linn explained that because the details of each incident are so different it’s presented somewhat of a challenge in identifying the issue. According to Linn, the only common factor in each report has been the practice of vaping itself and the severity of the damage caused. “As of our last call, the only commonality they have found thus far is the severity of the disease. It’s severely impacting our patients,” said Linn.
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There has been one incident reported in Navajo County that is being under surveillance by the Navajo County Public Health Department but details of the call were not available due to Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).
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