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(Carl Stevens/WBZ NewsRadio)
NEWBURYPORT, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Vaping related illness has put over 2,000 people in the hospital, and has resulted in the deaths of at least 39 people in the country. However, health concerns regarding vaping are relatively recent. Reports started coming in just this year, after a decade of vapes being sold commercially. In Massachusetts, three people have died and at least 65 are sick.
Newburyport High School senior Anne Marie Noe was suspicious of the product three years ago, when she decided to make it the subject of her Girl Scout Gold Award project.
"I've just really kind of immersed myself into everything that vaping has been doing in our society. It has definitely become a passion of mine, because Juul is taking over and we all need to do something to stop it," Noe said.
View Mass DPH's Weekly Vape Illness Data Here
Noe developed a course on vaping after seeing how prevalent it was in her school.
"I walked into the bathroom and immediately just saw a ton of people vaping. I was like 'whoa,' I didn't know what vaping was, I was so confused," Noe said. "I worked with my health teacher to create a sustainable health class curriculum. After that I worked with my mayor to do an online social media campaign."
Noe plans to continue awareness on the consequences of vaping.
"It just takes time, it's the same thing that happened to smoking. No one really knew it was bad until all the doctors researched it and they were like, 'oh wow, we need to do something," Noe said. "It takes one person to be like, 'OK, this is bad' and we all group together to stop it."
In Massachusetts, the state Cannabis Control Commission issued a quarantine on all marijuana vaping products, with the exception of those that vaporize marijuana flower, this week.
WBZ NewsRadio's Carl Stevens (@carlwbz) reports
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