Blame the Parents, not E-Liquids

It seems health bodies just love to criticize e-cigarettes without looking at the real problem. That’s the case with the reported increase in nicotine poisoning. Yet a deeper look at the figures reveals a different culprit.





According to the Center for Disease Control there’s an increase in the number of cases of nicotine poisoning across the States. They also claim that half of the calls involve children and the cause of the problem is the liquid in e-cigarettes.





Wichita Falls- Wichita County Public Health District Director of Health Lou Kreidler (a mouthful of a title if ever there was one) has spoken about the subject and of course goes down the usual route of the differing flavors of e-liquids available and that makes the product attractive to children





According to Kreidler, the variety of flavors markets to children who may smell an adult’s e-cigarette and try to taste the liquid inside. She added that nicotine poisoning isn’t the only problem because drinking the liquid can cause chemical burns and even become addictive. She’s called for parents to be alert because the e-cigarette liquid is toxic for children and they should treat the product like they would medication and keep it out of reach of their children.





No one wants to see children hurt in any way whatsoever but the incidents which Kreidler relate to is not the fault of the e-cigarette industry. No e-cigarette manufacturer has ever recommended that people should drink e-liquids, the incidents happening are accidents.

That fact is confirmed by news from the Washington Poison Center who have reported an increase of 600% in calls about e-cigarettes compared to recent years. At least 83 children have been dangerously exposed to nicotine compared to 50 last year.





Yet the figures show that 82% of those exposures occur in children ages 3 and under. So it’s more a case of parents not looking after their e-cigarettes than any actual problem with the product itself.





As for the claim that e-cigarettes are marketed towards children because of the different flavors available, well that simply isn’t true. For starters, you can’t buy e-cigarettes in Wichita Falls if you are under the age of 18. So any marketing by e-cigarette companies which she feels is aimed at under-18s is a bit of a waste of time isn’t it?





This whole business about e-cigarette companies targeting youngsters is just so frustrating. Walking down town today I saw massive billboards advertising e-cigarettes. Now children can see the billboards so is that blatant advertising of the product towards youths? No it isn’t and I’ll tell you why. You see at the bottom of the poster was a section that made it fully clear that those under the age of 18 cannot purchase e-cigarettes. Well if the industry is trying to target youngsters, why on earth would they put that on a poster? It’s the same with vaping lounges that don’t admit under-18s.





Yes there are under-18s that use e-cigarettes but that use isn’t down to companies advertising. It’s down to the fact that e-cigarettes, just like alcohol and tobacco cigarettes, actually exist. That rebellious streak is always going to be there to go out and try to do something you’re not actually old enough to do. There are plenty of under-age drivers on the roads but do we hear calls to ban cars?





Actions have been taken by e-cigarette companies to ensure that the kinds of accidents that are happening with e-liquids are prevented. Some e-cigarette liquids or e-juices are packaged in a bottle that requires you to push down and turn the lid at the same time, just like child-proof caps for prescriptions. That’s another example of the e-cigarette industry trying to protect people not poison them.





Kreidler hopes that the health department will help in tobacco education and talks about “teaching teens against tobacco use.” But why bring tobacco into the conversation? In fact why doesn’t she start promoting e-cigarettes because if teenagers are going to start using cigarettes, it’s a heck of a lot better for them to be using products that don’t include all the tars and poisons that tobacco cigarettes contain.



