Vapes or e-cigarettes have certainly risen in popularity in the last few years for a lot of different reasons. These nifty little devices offer a lot of what ordinary tobacco cigarettes do but with less fuss, mess, and problematic side effects.
Nevertheless, a cigarette is a cigarette, and alongside all their interesting flavorings, electronic cigarettes or vape pens do contain nicotine – liquid nicotine to be precise, and lots of it.
The inhalation of too much of that nicotine through second-hand or first-hand smoke – or even just a little, if you’re a child – can have major health consequences. What’s worse, however, is getting those toxic chemicals in a kid’s system through accidental ingestion.
So, if you’re wondering “My toddler inhaled my vape – what should I do?” or “My kid licked some of the vaping liquids – is he or she in trouble?”, let’s figure that out below.
My toddler inhaled my vape – is that dangerous?
The short answer is that, yes, it’s very dangerous. We’re used to thinking of vape pens as the harmless alternative to traditional cigarettes but the fact of the matter is that they still have nicotine in them and they are still addictive as well as associated with various types of lung disease in adults and teens, let alone in prepubescent children or toddlers.
So, keeping your vape pen, cartridge, refills, and all other vape paraphernalia away from your children’s reach is always a must.
What are the symptoms of nicotine poisoning I should watch out for?
Getting too much nicotine in one’s system is always a problem, regardless of the method of absorption or the age of the person. Naturally, the younger the person is and the larger the dose is, the more serious the problem. For someone as young as a toddler or for small pets, even one small lick of the vape juice or a hefty inhale can be a nearly lethal dose or worse.
Depending on the amount of nicotine that’s gotten into the child’s lungs, system, and bloodstream, the expected symptoms can start manifesting somewhere between 10 and 30 minutes after the incident. Also depending on the amount and severity, you can notice some, many, or all of the following symptoms:
- Nausea
- Dizziness
- Sweating
- Drooling
- Tiredness
- Drowsiness
- Shaking
- Twitching
- Confusion
- Vomiting
- Increased blood pressure
- Elevated heart rate
- Seizures
- Death
What’s also unfortunate is that even if you know the amount of vapor or e-liquid chemicals your child has inhaled or ingested, you can never be certain about the end result – for some people and kids the symptoms will be on the milder side but for others, things can get bad quickly.
So, it’s strongly recommended that you try and get to a hospital, poison control centers, or a disease control and prevention center as soon as you’ve noticed that an inhalation/ingestion has taken place and before even the first symptoms have started showing. Worst case scenario, you will have wasted a trip to the hospital, best case scenario – you will have saved your child’s life.
Is second-hand vaping a problem for babies and children?
Credit: allencarr
Second-hand vaping smoke is obviously not as dangerous as direct inhalation or even as second-hand smoke from a traditional cigarette. However, second-hand vaping still does contain harmful and even cancerogenic chemicals so it shouldn’t be done in the presence of children or babies, especially not regularly.
What to do in case of eye exposure to vaping products?
If your child has gotten vape liquid or smoke directly into his or her eye, you should make sure that you wash that eye as quickly and as thoroughly as possible with clean water. This washing easily can and should take at least several minutes, even if the child is restless and unhappy about it.
After the initial wash, you should assess the symptoms and whether or not you need to go get professional help. Don’t hesitate to do so just in case or, at least, to call your local poison control center for advice.
My baby or child licked or ate a part of my vape – how dangerous is this?
If your toddler has consumed some of your vapes you should seek immediate professional medical help as soon as possible, even if you’re not noticing any symptoms yet. Direct ingestion of vape liquid is extremely dangerous even for adults, let alone for kids or babies.
How to minimize the risk for your child?
Keeping all your vaping products and accessories out of the reach of pets and kids is always a must. This means:
- Always lock your vaping tools in a child-proof place where neither children nor pets can reach them.
- Never leave your vape or accessories just lying on the table and leave the room – you may believe that they’ll just stay there untouched but even just a few seconds can be enough for a child or a pet to reach for your vape and get in trouble.
- When you throw your vaping accessories in the trash, always make sure that no one can dig them out and get in trouble with them. It’s especially common for bored pets to often dig into their owners’ trash, especially when they sense something strange and smelly in there.
Kids and toddlers can also do that when they get bored and are unattended, however, so you should always be mindful when throwing your vaping products away.
In conclusion
E-cigs and it’s no surprise that more and more people in the United States and across the world are using them. However, even as fans of vaping, we shouldn’t deny the fact that there are addictive and harmful chemicals and particles in vapes – what you’re vaping is still nicotine.
In fact, the liquid nicotine in vapes can be even more dangerous if you – or especially a child, toddler, or small pet – come in direct contact with it. So, extreme care is necessary to make sure that you avoid all possible accidents with ill-advised inhaling or ingesting of nicotine.
