Juul and Vaping Injury Lawsuits

Juul and Vaping Injuries

After decades of teen and youth nicotine usage dropping as a result of tobacco and health education initiatives, the trend has reversed at epidemic levels in recent years with the introduction of Juul. Juul is an e-cigarette or vaping device that has become popular with teens and young people and offers a slick design that can easily pass for a USB flash drive which made it easy to disguise from unsuspecting parents, school administrators and others.

When Juul initially launched their product, they made very deliberate and effective efforts to target the youth market via social media strategies that depicted, young, cool, attractive individuals using the device. Early ads and posts on social media sites such as Twitter and Instagram generally failed to mention that Juul was a nicotine device or that nicotine was a dangerous and addictive chemical. Juul even offered candy like flavors designed to be attractive to kids such as Creme Brulee, Mango, Cool Cucumber, and Cool Mint.

The vape/e-cigarette industry in general has tried to position their products as “safe” often making statements such as “completely safe” and “99% safer than traditional cigarettes”, statements that have not been approved by the FDA and appear to be completely made up and based on a total lack of actual evidence or science. Juul recently even sponsored what they called a tobacco education initiative in which they were supposed to educate young people on the dangers of vaping, but according to testimony before congress actually pulled a big tobacco bait and switch and asked adults to leave the room so that the ‘students could ask questions freely” of the “educator who the preceded to pull out a Juul device and explain to the students that using Juul was completely safe.

Recent Injuries and Deaths Linked to Vaping

As of Sept 2019, hundreds of mystery lung ailments and several deaths have resulted from vaping, in some cases from individuals who had only vaped for a very short time. According to reports, the CDC is investigating 380 “probable” and “confirmed” cases of a vaping-associated lung disease and 6 deaths have been reported. The majority of the illnesses are linked to individuals who were vaping both THC and Nicotine products, but in some instances only nicotine was reported being used. Health officials are urging people to avoid using e-cigarettes and THC vaping products amid the outbreak.

Serious Injuries Linked to Vaping/E-Cigarette Use

Wet Lung – Wet lung occurs when matter breathed into the lungs triggers an immune response called hypersensitivity. This results in the lung tissue becoming inflamed, known as pneumonitis. In acute wet lung, symptoms can include coughing, shortness of breath, as well as a fever and joint pain which can come on suddenly.
Popcorn Lung – “Popcorn lung” is the nickname for bronchiolitis obliterans. That’s a condition that damages your lungs’ smallest airways and makes you cough and feel short of breath. It’s sometimes caused by breathing in a chemical used to flavor microwave popcorn. It has also been linked to chemicals in e-cigarettes inhaled by vaping.
Respiratory/Lung Issues – Since very few to no long term studies have been done on the effects of vaping over a long period of time there is serious concern that we will continue to discover injuries, particularly lung and respiratory illnesses as a result of vaping over time.
Seizures – Seizures or convulsions are known potential side effects of nicotine toxicity
Throat Cancer and Tongue Cancer – E-cigarettes, sometimes called vapes, run on batteries and heat up nicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals. They turn them into a vapor you can breathe in. Many chemicals that cause cancer are in this vapor. That includes formaldehyde, heavy metals, and particles that can get stuck in the deepest parts of your lungs.
Teeth Issues – There is substantial evidence vaping can have the same effect as cigarettes on teeth and gums; decreased blood flow and cellular turnover, which can increase the risk of gum disease and tooth loss for individuals who use e-cigarettes like Juul.
Death – There has been much recent publicity over what has been referred to as a mystery vaping respiratory illness and at the time of this writing, 6 deaths, but the long term effect of vaping has much potential to
Nicotine Addiction – As a result of Juul’s early, aggressive marketing which failed to mention nicotine and the risk of nicotine addiction, they have created the potential for hundreds of thousands of young users of their products to become nicotine addicts. Many of these victims will be lifetime users potentially even converting to smoking. Juul claims this was not their intent and that they only want adults using their products. A deep look at their early marketing efforts show that to be a lie. They clearly targeted a young demographic and now they have a large market share among that audience in many cases they will continue to keep them as customers once they are adults. Juul pods have a high amount of nicotine and it is easy for young people to quickly become addicted based on the amount of nicotine they are taking in.

“During this particular seminar, the students were alone in a classroom with a Juul representative. Mintz testified that the representative said, repeatedly, Juul is “totally safe.””

Serious Injuries Linked to Vaping/E-Cigarette Use

Wet Lung – Wet lung occurs when matter breathed into the lungs triggers an immune response called hypersensitivity. This results in the lung tissue becoming inflamed, known as pneumonitis. In acute wet lung, symptoms can include coughing, shortness of breath, as well as a fever and joint pain which can come on suddenly.
Popcorn Lung – “Popcorn lung” is the nickname for bronchiolitis obliterans. That’s a condition that damages your lungs’ smallest airways and makes you cough and feel short of breath. It’s sometimes caused by breathing in a chemical used to flavor microwave popcorn. It has also been linked to chemicals in e-cigarettes inhaled by vaping.
Respiratory/Lung Issues – Since very few to no long term studies have been done on the effects of vaping over a long period of time there is serious concern that we will continue to discover injuries, particularly lung and respiratory illnesses as a result of vaping over time.
Seizures – Seizures or convulsions are known potential side effects of nicotine toxicity
Throat Cancer and Tongue Cancer – E-cigarettes, sometimes called vapes, run on batteries and heat up nicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals. They turn them into a vapor you can breathe in. Many chemicals that cause cancer are in this vapor. That includes formaldehyde, heavy metals, and particles that can get stuck in the deepest parts of your lungs.
Teeth Issues – There is substantial evidence vaping can have the same effect as cigarettes on teeth and gums; decreased blood flow and cellular turnover, which can increase the risk of gum disease and tooth loss for individuals who use e-cigarettes like Juul.
Death – There has been much recent publicity over what has been referred to as a mystery vaping respiratory illness and at the time of this writing, 6 deaths, but the long term effect of vaping has much potential to
Nicotine Addiction – As a result of Juul’s early, aggressive marketing which failed to mention nicotine and the risk of nicotine addiction, they have created the potential for hundreds of thousands of young users of their products to become nicotine addicts. Many of these victims will be lifetime users potentially even converting to smoking. Juul claims this was not their intent and that they only want adults using their products. A deep look at their early marketing efforts show that to be a lie. They clearly targeted a young demographic and now they have a large market share among that audience in many cases they will continue to keep them as customers once they are adults. Juul pods have a high amount of nicotine and it is easy for young people to quickly become addicted based on the amount of nicotine they are taking in.

A Youth Nicotine Epidemic

Juul use rose exponentially in 2018 among young people — a majority of those who ever used JUUL or an e-cigarette report that they were younger than 18 years old when they first tried it — and its popularity with friends and the availability of flavors are top reasons for using it, according to Truth Initiative® surveys.

Over the past year, those surveys found that 56 percent of youth and young adults who ever used JUUL or an e-cigarette reported that they were younger than 18 when they first tried the device and nearly half — 47 percent — said that they tried it because their friends used it. The assortment of fruity and sweet flavors, which are proven to attract young people, was the second most popular reason for use, at 29 percent. The surveys also report escalating rates of youth and young adult use alongside growing sales that have tripled JUUL’s e-cigarette market share in just over a year, from 24 to 75 percent.

The survey results contribute to a growing collection of evidence that JUUL’s popularity with young people is driving its unprecedented growth. For example, a recent Truth Initiative analysis published in Tobacco Control found that teens between 15 and 17 years old have 16 times greater odds of using JUUL than 25- to 34-year-olds, with nearly 10 percent of them having tried JUUL and more than 6 percent reporting current use.

Brands of E-Cigarettes

There are many brands of E-Cigarette/Vaping products, but as of the end of 2018, Juul was the biggest player with 76% of the market share. While they claim to target adults who wish to quit smoking, it has been clear from their early marketing efforts that their primary target was youth.

Juul
Aspire
Blu
Eleaf
Halo
Innokin
Joyetech
Kangertech
NextMind
NJOY
Vapage
Vuse

Juul told a 9th grade class their products were "totally safe," according to teens' testimony

During a House Committee on Oversight and Reform hearing on Wednesday, two teens spoke about their experience with Juul, the company that produces flavored e-cigarettes. The committee is investigating Juul’s role in the youth vaping epidemic, and the teens who testified said that Juul did advertise directly to teens — right in their own school.

Caleb Mintz, now 17, said he and his friend, Phillip Fuhrman, who also testified, were in the 9th grade when Juul came to their school to give students a presentation. Mintz said his school holds a mental health and addiction seminar three times a year, during which the teachers leave the room so the students have a safe space to talk.

During this particular seminar, the students were alone in a classroom with a Juul representative. Mintz testified that the representative said, repeatedly, Juul is “totally safe.”

Juul Informational Page

This is an information page about Juul and is related to potential lawsuits against Juul related to alleged underaged marketing and advertising and injuries. Juul is an American electronic cigarette company which spun off from Pax Labs in 2017. It makes the Juul e-cigarette, which packages nicotine salts from leaf tobacco into one-time use cartridges.

The Juul became the most popular e-cigarette in the United States at the end of 2017 and has a market share of 72% as of September 2018. Its widespread use by youth has triggered concern from the public health community and multiple investigations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Given the high nicotine concentrations in Juul, the nicotine-related health consequences of its use by young people could be more severe than those from their use of other e-cigarette products.

Altria Group (formerly Philip Morris Companies), acquired a 35% stake in Juul Labs for $12.8 billion on December 20, 2018. Altria is the parent company of Marlboro, who holds more combustible cigarette market share than the next 7 brands combined. According to a Wall Street Journal report, Altria’s investment in Juul was pushed by the fact that many smokers were switching to the electronic variant and Altria’s own e-cigarette product, MarkTen, was not selling well.

Juul target audience – Juul alleges that it is not targeting children and teens and that it supports efforts to limit tobacco products to people under age 21.

UULpods are available in four different flavors: Virginia Tobacco, Classic Tobacco, Menthol, and Mint.

On JUUL.com, JUULpods cost $15.99 for a 4-pack. Local excise tax and/or shipping costs may differ depending on your region. Each 5% JUULpod contains approximately 0.7mL with 5% nicotine by weight (approx. 40 mg per pod based upon 59 mg/mL) at the time of manufacture. Each 3% JUULpod is designed to contain approximately 0.7mL with 3% nicotine by weight (approx. 23 mg per pod based upon 35 mg/mL) at time of manufacture.