W hen Jewish teen Leah was diagnosed with atten- tion-deficit/hyperactivity dis- order (ADHD) last year, she finally had a name for the debilitating anxiety, mental distraction and stomach aches she expe- rienced daily. She said she missed a lot of school because of these emotional and physical symptoms. When her grades began to plummet, her mother asked school administrators what she should do to help her daughter. “Having ADHD was awful, ” said Leah, 15, a high school sophomore. “I had constant anxiety over everything. In my school life, it was paralyzing. The com- petition at my school is insane. Basically, you’ re setting yourself up for the rest of your life based on your ACT and SAT scores. ” Before she began getting professional help, Leah (who did not want her real name used) turned to vaping as a way to alleviate her feelings of crippling anxiety. “It’ s hard to stop vaping, ” she said. “It’ s just knowing you could use it” that serves as a comfort. Leah is part of a concerning trend to those in the medical profession who have seen a significant increase in young people using e-cigarettes. According to the Centers for Disease Control, use of e-cigarettes — also called vaping — jumped 78 percent among high school students and 48 percent among middle schoolers between 2017 and 2018. Medical experts note that individuals with attention deficit disorder (ADD), more commonly referred to today as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, are at an even higher risk of engaging in this health-threatening activity. Leah said that many of her classmates vape, despite flyers peppered on the walls of her school threatening suspension to anyone caught vaping. She also said it’ s easy to get e-cigarettes through friends. WHAT IS ADHD? ADHD is a brain disorder marked by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/ or hyperactivity-impulsivity that inter- feres with functioning or development, according to the National Institutes of Mental Health. NIMH reports that most children have the combined type of ADHD versus ADD. Because of a lack of impulse control, teens with ADHD are at greater risk of becoming addicted to substances, including the nicotine in vaping. “It’ s really staggering the numbers of teens vaping and how vaping has become so commonplace, ” said Dana Cohen, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist with the Beaumont Center for Human Development in Southfield. “Vaping is popular in general and when you add the ADHD component, primarily because of the poor impulse control, they tend to be risk takers. ” Cohen said those with ADHD have three core deficits, including not being able to sustain attention to work tasks, hyperactivity and reduced impulse con- trol. “Whereas most people [have the strategy of] ‘ ready, aim, fire, ’ those with ADHD are ‘ ready, fire, aim, ’ ” she said. “They act without thinking things through. ” Young people with ADHD struggle with social interactions, cope with inse- curity issues, worry about the things they say and, in general, try to impress others, according to Brooke Weingarden, D.O., MPH, a child/adolescent psychia- trist with the Birmingham Maple Clinic in Troy. “There’ s so much going on in their brain and they can’ t focus on one thing, ” she said. “It’ s like a marching band in their head. ” VAPING DEFINED Many types of electronic cigarettes are sold (legally to those age 18 and older) on the market today, including Juul and Eleaf as well as e-cigarettes sold in inde- pendent vape shops. Manufacturers have marketed the product as a way for smok- ers to quit the habit, but e-cigarettes still deliver nicotine, which is vaporized in a heated oil. Oils come in “flavors” such as bubble gum, candy and gummy bears as well as food flavors like chocolate, cheesecake and caramel. The oil itself, according to medical experts, contains harmful, cancer-caus- ing chemicals, including butane, and can lead to lung disease. “Somehow, when vaping first started, there was this misconception that it’ s safer, ” Cohen said. One pod of oil contains the same amount of nicotine in a single pack of cigarettes, according to Daniel Schnaar, M.D., a general pediatrician with Child Health Associates, with offices in Troy and Novi. He is also a member of Beaumont Health’ s Department of Pediatrics. Schnaar said he asks all his young patients if they vape, though many try to conceal the fact they do. “E-cigarette companies claim nicotine can help ADHD symp- toms, ” he said. “The vaping industry has taken parents, pediatricians, health departments and the FDA flat-footed. These companies have been ahead of the curve with marketing the products. “We’ re worried about kids getting addicted to nicotine. Vaping makes them Dr. Dana Cohen Dr. Daniel Schnaar health Signs of Vaping Beaumont Health professionals provide these warning signs: • Increased secrecy or an unwillingness to discuss or answer your questions. • Increased irritability and mood changes due to a nicotine addiction. • Disappearing money. • An increased unwillingness to stay at home. • Increased thirst — vaping dehydrates the skin around the mouth and throat. • A desire for flavor because of a dry mouth. Notice if your child is using more salt or requesting spicy foods. • Nosebleeds. Vaping also dries the skin of the nose, which can lead to bleeding. • Finding vaping paraphernalia around the house. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION ELIZABETH KATZ SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS Vaping Dangers Young people with ADHD are at greater risk for e-cigarette nicotine addiction. 42 February 28 • 2019 jn