Man who took up vaping instead of cigarettes aged 16 ended up on life support
Man who took up vaping instead of cigarettes aged 16 ended up on life support
A man who started vaping when he was a teenager ended up on life support and almost died.
Ewan Fisher, from Nottingham, took up vaping when he was just 16 in a bid to stop smoking and get fitter.
However, the habit quickly took hold, with the teen using his fruity e-cigarette 14 times a day.
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Eventually, he developed a condition called hypersensitivity pneumonitis, which is when the lungs develop an immune response to something being inhaled, causing the lung tissue to become inflamed.
And the day before he was due to start his GCSE exams, Ewan fell ill.
After being rushed to hospital, he spent the next eight weeks in intensive care, needing the support of an artificial lung to stay alive.
Speaking about his horrific ordeal, Ewan told Good Morning Britain that it 'ruined' his life.
"I took up vaping as a substitute for smoking cigarettes because I wanted to fulfil my boxing career and get to my maximum potential," he said.
"My mum told me to stop vaping but I didn't listen and it just went downhill from there.
"I ended up on two different life support machines in a coma with just 20 per cent chance of living.
"At one stage they called my family in to say goodbye because they didn't think I would make it through the night.
"It ruined my whole life."
And now, five years on from his stint in ICU, Ewan said that he is still feeling the effects of his vaping habit.
"Doctors told me I'd make a full recovery but I'm still having quite a lot of side effects now," he explained.
"It took me quite a long time to even walk again so I missed a lot of my main teenage years."
Ewan is now keen to warn other youths who might think of taking up vaping to think again.
"Please, please don't do it," he pleaded.
"It affects everyone around you and I was close to death."
Professor Jonathan Grigg is a specialist in paediatric medicine.
Speaking on the show, he said that people need to think about the long term repercussions of vaping.
"We know vapes are not safe," he said.
"Ewan is the tip of the iceberg. We're building up a whole cohort of children who are going to be addicted to vaping and have long-term effects on their developing lungs and cause disease."
Dominic Smithers