Working together to make Aitkin County a healthier place to live, work, and play!
Supported by the Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP), Minnesota Department of Health
Vaping
According to the American Lung Association,"E-cigarettes are not safe and can cause irreversible lung damage and lung disease. No one should use e-cigarettes or any other tobacco product. This message is even urgent today following the increasing reports of vaping-related illnesses and deaths nationwide." E-cigarettes contain chemicals harmful to lung health such as heavy metals, carcinogens, vegetable glycerin and propylene glycerol. The developing lungs of youth may be more at risk, making what the Surgeon General refers to as a youth e-cigarette epidemic even more alarming."
Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, are tobacco products that have been sold in the U.S for about a decade. They include e-pens, e-pipes, e-hookah, and e-cigars, known collectively as ENDS- electronic nicotine delivery systems. They're also sometimes called JUULs, "vapes" and "vape pens." While much remains to be determined about the lasting health consequences of e-cigarettes, there's evolving evidence about the health risks of e-cigarettes on the lungs- including irreversible lung damage and lung disease.
What are E-Cigarettes?
The main competent of e-cigarettes is the e-liquid contained in cartridges. To create an e-liquid, nicotine is extracted from tobacco and mixed with a base and may also include flavoring, colorings and other chemicals (such as formaldehyde and aroclein, which can cause irreversible lunch damage).
Most common reasons youth use e-cigarettes
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39 % Use by "friend or family member"
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31% Availability of "flavors such as mint, candy, fruit, or chocolate"
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17% Belief that "they are less harmful than other forms of tobacco such as cigarettes"
Public Health Concerns about use by Young People
Vaping
Cigarettes
According to the American Lung Association, "Every year in the U.S., more than 480,000 people diet from tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke, make it the leading cause of preventable death in this country. Tragically, each day thousands of kids still pick up a tobacco product for hte first time.
Health Effects
Smoking and use of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, cigars and smokeless tobacco, cause or worsen numerous disease and conditions. Learn more about how smoking and using tobacco impacts your health.
What is in a Cigarette?
Arsenic, lead, tar are just a few of more than 7,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke. See what else is in a cigarette.
Kids and Smoking
The best way to prevent tobacco-related illness and death is to keep kids from starting smoke in the first place. See why kids start and get tips to talk to your kids about smoking