More and more people are becoming ill due to vaping. This is something that all people that vape should be aware of since it isn't just one brand causing the outbreak.
It was believed that Dank Vapes was the biggest cause of the vaping illness since the company used THC in their products. THC is a psychoactive compound commonly found in marijuana. However, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) claimed in a report made last week that "It is unlikely that one brand is responsible for the outbreak." CDC believe that it isn't just one brand responsible for the epidemic. CDC labeled this vaping lung disease as EVALI. In the report, the institute named several brands that were believed to be the cause of EVALI. These brands included Dank Vapes, TKO, Smart Cart and Rove. All these brands had their products tested and each had traces of THC in them. 152 vaping brands overall were reported to have THC-containing products by hospitalizing patients with EVALI.
"Nationally, Dank Vapes were the most commonly reported THC-containing product by hospitalized EVALI patients, but a wide variety of products were reported, with regional differences. Data suggest the outbreak might have peaked in mid-September." CDC reported.
As of December 3, 2,291 patients have been hospitalized with similar cases in all 50 states. About 48 fatalities have been reported so far. Reports of which brand caused patients to become illness varied depending on the region. Patients in the West mostly used TKO and Smart Cart. Rove was more commonly reported by patients in the Midwest. However, Dank Vapes was most commonly reported nationwide with a high concentration of reports coming from the Northeast and South.
CDC officials looked deeper into the case. They were able to get further data on the hospitalized patients.Through the CDC analysis, they discovered what demographic of people were affected most by the outbreak. The patients' ages ranged from 13 to 77 with 24 being the median. This meant that half of the victims were people ages 13 to 24. 67% of the patients were male. 75% of patients are non-Hispanic white and 16% are Hispanic. The fatalities of the patients ranged from ages 17 to 75.
The peak of people being hospitalized by EVALI started to decline in September. However, based on this report, CDC continues to advise people to not only avoid THC-containing vapes, but all vaping products in general.
Members of big tobacco that have been affected by the e-cigarette ban and vaping controversy: Altria Group (NYSE: MO), Imperial Tobacco Group (OTC: IMBBY), British American Tobacco (NYSE: BTI) and Japan Tobacco (OTC: JAPAY).