Health Risk Concerns Raised After Fort Plain, New York Toddler Reportedly Dies Form Drinking From E-Cigarette Refill Bottle
A New York toddler died on Tuesday, possibly from drinking from an e-cigarette refill bottle.
The Independent reported the one-year-old's death has prompted calls to change how the liquid nicotine products are presented. Police said the death was tragic, and it is believed to be the first death involving a child and e-cigarettes.
Last Tuesday, police were called to a Fort Plain home for an unresponsive child, who died a short while later.
Fort Plain police released a statement which confirmed that the child had drunk from a glass bottle containing liquid nicotine that did not have a childproof cap, according to The Independent. Officers did not confirm whether or not the liquid was linked to e-cigarette use.
The child's death throws an issue already making its way through the state government into the spotlight. A bill has already been introduced that would require child-resistant containers for liquid nicotine, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo is expected to sign the bill later this month.
The main concern of the marketing of e-cigarette refills and the product presentation is they are similar to fruit juices and sweets, therefore dangerously attractive for children.
"We certainly know that liquid nicotine is toxic," Judy Rightmyer, director of the Capital District Tobacco-Free Coalition, told Albany's Times Union newspaper, according to The Independent. "They are marketing this liquid nicotine in candy and fruit flavors, so they can be appealing to young people. And with no childproof caps on them, they're lethal, as we unfortunately saw."
In 10 states, e-cigarettes are available to teens under 18 years of age, which is about 16 million potential users, according to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, The Independent reported.
Incidents of exposure to liquid nicotine have risen in the country from 2011, when 271 were reported, to Nov. 30 this year when 3,638 incidents were reported.
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