Official issues urgent warning about hidden opioids in common product marketed toward children: 'We need to protect them'

Vaping's potential of getting kids hooked on nicotine is a worrisome enough health prospect. As if that wasn't bad enough, information out of Belgium indicates that potential opioid addiction among youth is also on the table.

What's happening?

Appearing on a Euronews' interview program "12 Minutes With," Ine Van Wymersch, Belgium's first-ever drug commissioner, revealed that 80% of illegal refill capsules seized in the country contain opioids. 

Complicating detection by users or authorities is the fact that opioid-laced capsules don't have a telltale smell or color, per Van Wymersch. Exposure to opioids carries a risk of long-lasting addiction. That could be especially true among young people attracted to vaping by fruit or candy flavors.

"There is a risk that their brain will not develop the way it should," Van Wymersch said. "We need to protect them from that by taking measures against all these logistic chain issues that are abused."

Those issues refer to the rise in synthetic drugs in Belgium. The trend is partly due to chemicals imported from China and India being misused despite their legal purposes in the petrochemical and pharmaceutical industries.

Why is vaping's connection to opioids important?

Vaping devices are marketed with appealing flavors, which increase their popularity among young people. That can amplify the health risks among youth, like nicotine addiction and long-term lung damage.

Van Wymersch's revelations add another wrinkle, in potential exposure and addiction to opioids, to the better-known risks mentioned above. A similar added risk was found in New Zealand, where sedatives were found in vapes. Van Wymersch pointed to an additional risk factor, which is criminal organizations exploiting vulnerable youths for their operations.

Even outside of these youth-specific risks, disposable vapes pose a major challenge to public health. 

They contribute significantly to environmental problems because of their composition of single-use plastics and toxic e-waste that make them difficult to dispose of safely. They can cause fires, endanger animals, and leak microplastics when thrown in the trash or in nature.

What's being done about vaping's risks to children?

Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke is advocating for a complete ban on flavors to prevent criminal organizations from targeting children. That would make the country one of the most stringent in Europe when it comes to vape regulation, per Euronews.

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Cracking down on criminal organizations' infiltration of Belgium is another necessary step. Van Wymersch asserted that Belgium is at "serious risk of moving toward becoming a narco-state," with a large network backing items like the opioid-laced vape refills.

Around the globe, countries have taken measures to prevent these illegal products from reaching the market. It will take a concerted global effort to stop illegal vapes from making their way to children and exposing them to an ever-growing array of health risks.

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