Risks of Smoking JUUL

By Claggett & Sykes Trial Lawyers | September 13, 2019

JUUL is a popular electronic cigarette that packs a potent punch; it contains more than twice the amount of nicotine per cartridge than its competitors. Nicotine has recognized addictive properties and may even impede brain development in young users. Despite manufacturers marketing e-cigarettes as a safer alternative to tobacco products, devices such as JUUL could be exposing users to serious risks of long-term illnesses and injuries.

What Is JUUL?

JUUL is a small, easy-to-use e-cigarette with cartridges shaped like USB drives that contain liquid nicotine and other chemicals. The device vaporizes these liquids into a form that users can inhale. Before JUUL debuted, the leading e-cigarette brand contained 1% to 2.4% nicotine per cartridge. JUUL, however, contains 5% nicotine in its vape liquid. The increased nicotine strength is something many users do not realize when they choose JUUL over its competitors. If they are aware, they may not understand the related risks this much nicotine could have.

Many users are misinformed about the liquids in JUUL and other e-cigarette devices. JUUL and other brands may engage in marketing tactics that target young users, including creating fruity, sweet and candy-like JUUL flavors. A 2018 study illustrated this fact by finding 63% of young people (ages 15 to 24) who used JUUL did not know their products contained nicotine. Most thought they were inhaling only cartridges of flavor. Using JUUL as a kid or teenager could harm brain development until the mid-20s due to nicotine inhalation. JUUL cartridges also contain other potentially harmful substances for users.

How Much Is Too Much?

No amount of JUUL liquid is safe to vaporize. Any amount could contain enough nicotine to spark a chain reaction, encouraging the user to continue vaporizing until he or she develops a nicotine dependency. This could lead to tobacco use down the road, along with related health risks. Truth Initiative finds young people who vape using devices such as JUUL are four times more likely to start smoking tobacco cigarettes than their peers. E-cigarettes are unsafe for all users, regardless of age.

The amount of nicotine in a single JUUL cartridge is the equivalent of 200 cigarette puffs or a whole pack of tobacco cigarettes. Vaporizing this amount of nicotine is often easier than smoking a pack of cigarettes, however, since the JUUL liquid contains attractive flavors and scents. Smoking even one JUUL cartridge could lead to nicotine dependence. JUULing for a long period could expose the user to other health risks, including lung illnesses and cancers. Inhaling nicotine and additive chemicals directly into the lungs could cause life-threatening respiratory issues over time.

JUUL has only been around since 2016, yet JUUL users have already started to report health issues such as persistent coughing, phlegm, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. Recently, a severe pulmonary disease with possible connections to e-cigarettes has caused the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate. E-cigarette users in 25 states have reported this serious illness. Cases of e-cigarettes exploding due to defective lithium batteries have also caused catastrophic and fatal injuries, including shrapnel lacerations, lost eyes, broken teeth, third-degree burns and amputated fingers.

Can You Sue if Injured?

Users with JUUL- or other e-cigarette-related injuries like burn injuries, may have grounds to file civil claims against the manufacturers of the devices. JUUL and other brands have a duty to warn consumers of all known risks associated with their products. False advertising or breaches of warranty could expose the e-cigarette manufacturer to liability for related consumer injuries and illnesses. Releasing defective products, such as devices that may explode or catch fire, could also give rise to product liability lawsuits. If a JUUL or another e-cigarette product injured you or caused serious illness, talk to a Las Vegas personal injury lawyer  about your legal options in Nevada.

Posted in Personal Injury, Product Defect, Product Liability