Surviving EVALI, ECMO & E-cigarettes

I see the worst case scenarios as an ICU doctor- today's episode introduces you to someone whose fruity nicotine-containing e-cigarette landed her on something called ECMO. It is a scary story of ICU survivorship and also an incredible one of resilience. Petrea McKeithen is a young mother and ECMO survivor and has generously shared her story with the American Lung Association and now with you!So what can you do?

• Find out if your county or state has a comprehensive flavored tobacco ban. You can learn more about why this is important in the “Breaking States Free from Flavored Tobacco and Why it Matters” episode from Season Five. 

• Look back through the Air Health Our Health podcast feed for a host of episodes on the history and chemistry of menthol, of flavoring chemicals, of targeting kids, etc. 

• Look up who represents you in your county or state and reach out to them asking about what they intend to do to make flavored tobacco harder to obtain.

• If you or someone you know has gone through a stay in the ICU, learn more about potential after effects at ICUdelirium.org and how you can support them both during their ICU stay and afterwards.

• Consider a donation to the American Lung Association or the Campaign for Tobacco Free kids

• Also, this podcast is a labor of love. You don’t hear ads, I don’t make any money on it. It exists to spread the word about steps people can take to help keep their communities healthy. You can help by spreading the word. Please consider leaving the podcast a 5 star review wherever you listen to help spread the word. Please also share an episode you found helpful with a friend or on social media.

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