American health care officials are keeping a close eye on a sudden increase in serious lung ailments that could be linked to vaping.

The Washington Post is reporting that US health officials are investigating nearly 100 cases of a mystery lung illness among teens and young people who use e-cigarettes.

The paper reports that symptoms include difficulty breathing, chest pain, fever, vomiting and diarrhea, with no “consistent evidence that an infectious disease is the culprit.”

That comes as no particular surprise to Kevin Coady of the NL Alliance for the Control of Tobacco. While he’s not aware of any local cases, they are concerned with what’s known as the “vaping epidemic”.

He says some people are exposed to additives that they may or may not be aware of.

Dr. Leslie Phillips is with MUN’s Smoking Cessation research program. She says while vaping is the safer alternative for smokers looking to wean off the product, it is not safe. She says many believe the vapour produced is nothing more than harmless water, but it’s not water that’s creating that plume of vapour.

It’s propylene glycol, or theatrical smoke. Other substances include ultrafine particles and flavourings that may be Health Canada approved, but for ingestion and not inhalation.

She says the recent cases in the US raise a lot of questions.

There are hundreds of devices and thousands upon thousands of different e-juices or e-liquids. Whether the illness is linked to a type of device, or if it’s something in the e-juice is not known, but she calls it another sign that young people in particular should not vape.