The teenage vaping trend is causing global concern, with authorities warning of a looming health crisis, and in Britain, a prediction that the country “is sleepwalking into an existential crisis for children”.
In fact, reports the Daily Mail, with the predatory marketing tactics of vape retailers being so successful, and with their brazen targeting of children – with flavoured vapes – health officials are now proposing an outright ban on all products.
Shock NHS data shows almost one in 10 secondary pupils in England are regular vapers, double the proportion in 2014, with as many as 30% of under-18s in some regions having used the devices, according to statistics.
In the United States, it’s not much different, with one in 10 middle and high school students using vapes.
One vape-addicted American teenager almost died from the trend, with his lungs collapsing four times and doctors warning that they resembled those of someone who had smoked three packets of cigarettes a day for 30 years.
Draven Hatfield (19) began vaping when he was just 13 because it was a “neat trend”, and initially, he did it only on weekends until his habit progressed to “every day, all the time”.
It wasn't until the construction worker was rushed to hospital with a collapsed lung four times in four months that his health scares were linked to vaping.
Doctors were “positive” the damage was caused by vaping, saying his lungs looked as if he’d smoked “three packs of cigarettes a day for at least 30 years”, which, he said, left him “very scared”.
Hatfield began vaping box mods – larger vapes which have more power and flavour than regular vapes – before switching to disposable e-cigs three years later.
“At first it was just weekend, but then the habit grew, until at least once a day I was refilling it, sometimes once every two days. I moved on to the disposable vapes and probably used one every two to three days.”
In October 2021, aged 17, he was rushed to hospital after suddenly suffering severe chest pain and cramps down his left side.
Doctors said he had spontaneous pneumothorax – the sudden onset of a collapsed lung. It is triggered by a collection of air between the lung and its outer surface – called a bleb – which ruptures and causes air to leak into the space around the lung.
Symptoms include sharp chest pain, worsened by a deep breath or cough, a rapid heart rate and fatigue.
In most cases, the cause of a collapsed lung is unknown. But smoking increases the risk and experts believe vaping may, too.
The habits increase the risk of blebs – which are not a problem on their own – bursting, leading to a collapsed lung.
Hatfield spent the next week in hospital connected to a chest tube, which is inserted between the ribs to allow the lung to re-expand fully.
But the next week, his left lung collapsed for a second time. Two months later, in December 2021, his right lung collapsed.
This time, he was actually vaping when he felt his lung collapse – at which point he connected his health problems to vapes and decided to quit.
“I just felt a little pop and, as I’d been through it, I knew what it was. I was breathing differently and every time I swallowed, I had a little pinch in my side.”
After talking to the specialist he decided to quit vaping.
But his health woes continued, and his lung collapsed for a fourth time in February 2022. Doctors had to perform a bullectomy – surgery to remove air pockets from his right lung.
He has since recovered though he still suffers from chest pain, and is now keen to raise awareness of the hazards of vaping.
“The specialist said that it developed air bubbles on my lungs and they would burst and leak air and that would cause my lung to collapse.”
He added that he “had thought vaping was better than smoking and I was worried about my future”. He still experiences pain and has been left with scars and worries that his lung will collapse again.
“I’ll never touch a vape or smoke again.”
As well as the child-friendly flavours and colours, experts have also blamed social media for glamourising the devices, while TikTok and Instagram are also awash with individuals offering to sell the gadgets to children.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
UK £1bn vaping industry ‘targets children’ with cartoons and kiddy flavours
Vaping among teens at SA’s affluent schools ‘a significant problem’
US FDA warns companies of ‘illegal’ e-cigarettes in crackdown on youth vaping
Survey shows that Australian teenagers have ready access to illegal vaping products