A 16-year-old Israeli has suffered collapsed lungs and is in serious condition after using electronic cigarettes.
The Israel Cancer Society (ICA), the Association of Public Health Physicians, and the Medical Society for Prevention and Smoking Cessation all wished the teen a speedy recovery and noted that the use of e-cigs is spreading among children and youth in Israel and that parents must know about the danger they can cause to their children.
Health agencies use incident to discourage smoking
“Electronic cigarettes are a dangerous and addictive product. Every week, more scientific evidence is accumulated on the relationship between electronic cigarettes and significant health risks, especially among teenagers who are particularly vulnerable, since the brain continues to develop until at least the age of 25,” the ICA said.
“It is a relatively new product, so all the health damages have not yet been revealed, but we already know that the use of electronic cigarettes increases the risk of attention and concentration disorders, headaches, migraines, impulsivity, emotional imbalance, depression, and anxiety, as well as asthma in adolescents and impotence and premature aging of the brain in adults,” the society said.
“Although the electronic cigarette companies are trying to sell an image of clean cigarettes without smoke and without cancer,” the ICA stated, “this is fake news, since updated studies have also indicated genetic changes associated with the development of cancerous tumors in the oral cavity, health and in the bladder among the users.”
Similar cases of serious damage from e-cigs to children and teens have been reported in the past in Israel and around the world, said Prof. Hagai Levin, chairman of the Israel Association of Public Health Physicians.
“There is a need for improved enforcement and close supervision of the addictive and health-damaging smoking products, in order to protect public health and in particular the health of children,” he said.
“Because of their availability and low price, along with the variety of flavors, they appeal especially to teenagers.”
Prof. Hagai Levin
Surveys from recent years indicate a significant increase in the use of disposable e-cigs by teenagers in Israel. “Because of their availability and low price, along with the variety of flavors, they appeal especially to teenagers,” Levin said. “We call on the government to completely ban the disposable electronic cigarette and ensure the enforcement of the ban on the sale of tobacco products and smoking to minors.”
