Many parents unaware of e-cigarette dangers to children?

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-08/wuso-mpu082515.php

Public Release: 25-Aug-2015
Many parents unaware of e-cigarette dangers to children?
Washington University School of Medicine

As the use of e-cigarettes has risen dramatically in the United States in recent years, so have calls to poison centers about them. Yet many parents who use e-cigarettes - or "vape" - aren't aware of the dangers to children, according to a new study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

The devices are used like typical cigarettes but instead of tobacco, they vaporize a liquid mixture of nicotine, glycerin and glycol ethers. The liquid form is flavored, which appeals to children. If ingested, a teaspoon of this "e-liquid" can be lethal to a child, and smaller amounts can cause nausea and vomiting that require emergency care. Exposure to skin also can sicken children.

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The researchers found that 36 percent of the e-cigarette users neither locked up e-liquid bottles nor used childproof caps. Such caps, while required in Europe, are not mandated in the United States. E-liquid most commonly was stored in a drawer or cupboard (34 percent), a purse or bag (22 percent) or on an open counter (13 percent), the study showed.

"Three percent of the people in our study said a child of theirs had tried to drink the e-liquid," Garbutt said. "The easiest way to lower risk is to store e-liquid out of the reach of children. Open counters and shelves, unlocked drawers, and purses and bags aren't safe storage places."

Last year, a toddler in New York died after ingesting liquid nicotine intended for use in an e-cigarette.

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