BOSTON (WHDH) - A new study on vaping found that a growing number of middle and high school students are being exposed to second-hand vapor from electronic cigarettes.
Dr. Andy Tan, a researcher at Dana Farber, authored a report that found that the number of students who said they were exposed to second-hand vapor between 2017 and 2018 went up by about 30 percent.
The study spanned three years from 2015 to 2018.
“In 2018 that number jumped to about one in three students,”
This is a concerning jump for Dr. Tan and others.
“There is some emerging evidence that second-hand aerosols can lead to harmful health effects in young people,” Dr. Tan said.
According to the Center for Disease Control, there has been a rise in the number of vapor related illnesses nationwide.
Now, many are calling for more regulation.
“When kids vape, they think they are vaping water vapor,” Dr. Sucharita Kher of Tufts Medical Center said. “But, a lot of them it is not just water vapor. It is a lot of these other substances, heavy metals, nicotine and other things that can cause lung damage.”
Dr. Tan said he hopes his study will lead to more research and awareness regarding the dangers of vaping.
“We want to make sure we are protecting young people from all kinds of tobacco emissions including cigarettes and electronic cigarettes.”
7News reached out to a number of e-cigarette companies regarding the results of this study. They have yet to respond.
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