Vaping and COVID-19 are a bad mix

Teen vaping is on the rise, especially among minorities, and poses more health risks in COVID era.

NEW TODAY: MORE THAN ONE INTHREE AMERICAN TEENS SAYTHEY'VE TRIED E-CIGARETTES.RESEARCH HAS SHOWN VAPING áCANLEAD TO LUNG ISSUES IN SOMEPEOPLE.

AND IN THE AGE OFCOVID-19--- A VIRUS THAT CANDO DAMAGE TO THE LUNGS... CANVAPING MAKE YOU MORESUSCEPTIBLE TO THE DISEASE?PETE ZERVAKIS EXPLORES THEISSUE THIS MORNING.VAPING HAS BEEN LINKED TO LUNGINFLAMATION... AND BLAMED FORAS MANY AS 60 DEATHS.

COVID-19IS HITTING AT A TIME WHEN MANYáTEENS ARE VAPING.

SO WE'RESHARING WHAT PARENTS SHOULD BEON THE LOOKOUT FOR...THIS IS A TELLTALE SIGN OFWHAT HEALTH EXPERTS NOW CALLAN EPIDEMIC AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE."Some like the flavor.

It's acool thing to do."BUT NO ONEIS IMMUNE TO VAPING'SPOTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SIDEEFFECTS."I started noticingthat once I would inhale, itwas hurting my chest.

It waslike a burn."SCIENTISTSSURVEYED OVER TWO THOUSANDELEVENTH AND TWELFTH GRADERS'E-CIGARETTE USE, THEN ASKEDABOUT WHEEZING OR BRONCHITISSYMPTOMS. THEY FOUND STUDENTSWHO VAPED WERE MORESUSCEPTIBLE TO LUNGINFLAMMATION AND RESPIRATORYSYMPTOMS. EXPERTS SAY IT'SLOGICAL THAT VAPING COULDCAUSE COVID TO BE MORE SEVERE."If the virus enters a lungthat's damaged, that thestructure has been broken,that is more permeable, thevirus is going to be able toget access perhaps in largernumbers or a larger viralload."BUT IS THAT HEALTHMESSAGE GETTING OUT?

INTERNETSEARCHES FOR VAPING AND COVIDPEAKED IN MARCH, BUT THENDROPPED OFF.

AND IN THE LATINOCOMMUNITY, FEWER PEOPLESEARCHED FOR INFORMATIONDESPITE A SURGE IN VAPINGAMONG LATINOS."So, there isvery well-known studies thatare done by the CDC and othergroups that show that Latinosare one of the fastest growingvaping groups in the U.S.""Alot of parents know that it'sa thing, but maybe not thattheir kids are doing itthemselves."DOCTOR HOLGUIN (oh-GEEN) SAYS PARENTS NEED TO ARMTHEIR KIDS WITH INFORMATION.RESEARCH SHOWS THE NUMBER OFKIDS WHO STARTED VAPING AT 14OR YOUNGER HAS TRIPLED IN THEPAST FIVE YEARS.

KIDS OFTENTHINK VAPING IS LESS HARMFULTHAN CIGARETTES.

BUT IT CAN BEADDICTIVE, AND NO ONE'S SUREYET ABOUT LONG-TERM IMPACTS ONLUNGS."And it's convincingyoung people like listen, youdon't want to be havingserious regrets 10, 15, 20years from now when you'regoing to be wanting to have areal full life at that time."THERE ARE RESOURCES AVAILABLEFOR PARENTS... WHO WANT THEIRCHILD TO STOP VAPING.

FOREXAMPLE: BECOME-AN-EX-DOT-ORGHAS A LIST OF PRACTICAL TIPS.THANKS PETE.TO SEE SEVERAL STORIES ABOUTHOW VAPING IMPACTS THE BODY--INCLUDING ITS IMPACT ON THEHEART-- HEAD TO TMJ4 DOT COMSLASH VAPING CRISIS.