By Illinois Radio Network/Benjamin Yount
SPRINGFIELD – Add Illinois to the list of states that are seeing people in the emergency room with lung problems after vaping.
The Illinois Department of Public Health said last week that they have confirmed seven cases of lung infections or other breathing problems in people who vape. There are 11 other possible cases.
Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike says some of the people hospitalized had to be fitted with breathing tubes.
Ezike said there no way to know just what it is about their vaping that made the people sick.
“We actually don’t know everything that we need to know about [vape liquid],” Ezike said. “We know that there are many dangerous and unknown chemicals. With these products coming in, at last count, maybe 8,000 different flavors. We really don’t know what’s in each of these products.”
Ezike said the Illinois Department of Public Health is looking to see if there’s a bad batch of vape liquid or if this is a broader problem.
“We don’t know if there is a certain type of vaping product,” she said. “We’re not sure what vaping product was used. We are still investigating and studying that.”
Ezike says parents need to talk with their kids about the reality of vaping.
The illnesses in Illinois come just a week or so after public health managers in Wisconsin reported eight people in the hospital for similar lung problems.
