More clues point to chemical compound in vaping illnesses

NEW YORK — Health officials said Tuesday they have more evidence that a certain chemical compound is a culprit in a national outbreak of vaping illnesses.

Researchers analyzed black-market vaping cartridges seized in Minnesota during the outbreak this year, and vaping liquid seized in that state last year. The newer cartridges contained the compound vitamin E acetate, but none of the older samples did.

They also looked at vaping cartridges collected from a dozen patients. Vitamin E acetate was commonly found in those, too.

The study was small, but it echoes other work that found the compound in the damaged lungs of 29 patients across the United States.

“The findings further support a potential role for vitamin E acetate in causing lung injury associated with vaping products,” said Dr. Ruth Lynfield, a Minnesota health official.

Nearly 2,300 Americans who vape have gotten sick since March, many of them teens and young adults, according to a tally by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. At least 47 people have died.

In Canada, as of Nov. 20, there were 11 confirmed or probable cases of severe lung illness related to vaping, including three in B.C.

In the U.S., most who got sick said they had vaped liquids that contain THC, the high-inducing part of marijuana. Vitamin E acetate has recently been used as a thickener in illicit vaping products that contain THC, officials said.

New York City lawmakers voted Tuesday to ban flavoured electronic cigarettes after a lawsuit halted a statewide ban.

“We are acting to protect our kids by banning the e-cigarette flavours that have been hooking them for years,” Democratic City Council member Mark Levine said before the council voted 42-2 to adopt the ban on flavoured vaping products.