Rhiannon Ingle
Experts have issued an urgent warning over the worrying ‘nic-sick’ side effect of smoking and vaping.
According to Action on Smoking and Health, as many as 10 percent of adults in the United Kingdom vape - a figure which is equal to an estimated 5.5 million people.
For such individuals, vaping is part of everyday life, with many toking on one while running errands, working from home, during a commute, on nights out and while relaxing.
But there are some really serious side effects of vaping, as well as your bog-standard regular cigarette smoking, that can be deadly.
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Experts at the American Lung Association (ALA) have issued a warning over the worrying 'nic-sick' symptom, which Panagis Galiatsatos, M.D., MHS, a volunteer medical spokesperson for the ALA and assistant professor at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, explained 'refers to non-specific symptoms of exposure to nicotine, especially if it is above someone's tolerance'.
Now, for context, there are over 3,000 chemicals hidden in tobacco products that make them harmful, including at least 69 that are believed to cause cancer - one of which is nicotine, which is known to be 'one of the most addictive drugs around'.
It's pretty simple: the higher the nicotine content, the stronger the addiction.
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With e-cigarettes and vaping, in particular, that risk runs high as more than 99 percent of e-cigarettes contain nicotine, and some brands deliver especially large doses.
Of course, nicotine is addictive at any level, but higher concentrations deepen dependence and raise the risk of overdose.
According to the ALA, the bigger concern is awareness, as many young users don't actually realise that brands like Juul contains nicotine at all, writing: "Nearly two out of three youth current Juul users incorrectly thought the product did not always contain nicotine."
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This helps explain the recent wave of headlines about the new nicotine-related illness, 'nic-sick'.
"Nicotine poisoning occurs when nicotine begins to exhibit more dire toxic effects on an individual," Galiatsatos added, when defining the catch-all term.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned that 50 to 60 milligrams of nicotine can be lethal for an adult weighing around 150 pounds - bear in mind a smoker typically absorbs about one to two milligrams from a cigarette.
While such a gap makes overdose uncommon in adults, vaping has reportedly shifted the risk, given that Juul says a single pod can contain as much nicotine as an entire pack of cigarettes.
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"Though this may vary because, without oversight, there is nothing stopping Juul or any other manufacturer from increasing nicotine levels," the ALA adds.
According to the ALA, there are several symptoms to be wary of when it comes to a possible nicotine overdose.
Within the first 15 minutes to an hour of being exposed, symptoms would create a stimulating effect, such as:
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Within 30 minutes to up to four hours later, symptoms shift and include:
"You will need to go to a hospital if your symptoms progress to include seizures, respiratory failure, cardiac arrest, breathing difficulties or even coma," the experts added.