Photo from: Janan Moein via The New York Times
A former vaper who recently contracted and recovered from the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) shares that he ‘probably would have died’ if he hadn’t quit vaping almost a year ago.
Twenty-year-old Janan Moein got into vaping in 2019, managing to finish several THC-laced cartridges within one week.
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However, reports from the New York Times reveal that Moein’s body gave in last December when he suffered from complications including a collapsed lung, and was diagnosed with vaping-related lung illness. He had to undergo a medically induced coma, use a breathing machine, and shed 50 pounds of weight during the process.
When got a mild case of COVID-19 after attending a family barbecue three months ago and managed to recover from the disease.
“If I had caught Covid-19 within the week before I got really ill, I probably would have died,” said Moein in an interview with The New York Times.
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Experts have warned both smokers and vapers that the risk of contracting COVID-19 is higher due to scarred lungs. Researchers and medical experts continue their studies to pinpoint key areas and findings that seem to enhance the propagation of the virus among smokers and vapers.
“I have no doubt in saying that smoking and vaping could put people at increased risk of poor outcomes from COVID-19. It is quite clear that smoking and vaping are bad for the lungs, and the predominant symptoms of COVID-19 are respiratory. Those two things are going to be bad in combination,” said Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir, a pediatric pulmonologist at Columbia University.
