Nicotine-poisoning related to the use of e-cigarettes increased 300% last year in the US, but Canada’s fragmented poison data- gathering system reveals only a disturbing lack of information.... “Canada does not have a national poisoning database and statistics are lacking,” says Martin Laliberté, president of the Canadian Association for Poison Control Centre. “Exposures to nicotine from e-cigarettes have been reported by provincial poison centres, but it is currently impossible to establish if nicotine poisonings are increasing.” He acknowledges that the increased availability of e-cigarettes “make nicotine sulfate more available and an increase in nicotine exposures seems a very likely consequence.” He is also concerned that the flavoring of the nicotine liquids makes these products very attractive to children. “This is a potential public health safety issue and many of us in the medical toxicology community are worried about the risk of exposure to nicotine sulfate in children and adults as well.” The liquid used in e-cigarettes contains nicotine sulfate, a very powerful neurotoxin, which can be absorbed through the skin or ingested. It was previously used as an insecticide, but was withdrawn in part because of the risk of toxicity associated with skin exposure. “Perhaps e-cigarettes users should be reminded that vaporizing an insecticide is not trendy at all.”
Language: en
LA - en SN - 0820-3946 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.109-4818 ID - ref1 ER -