Searching Google for a quick fix can be harmful to your health
Leas EC, Moy NH, Nobles AL, et al. Google shopping queries for vaping products, JUUL and IQOS during the E-cigarette, or Vaping, product use Associated Lung Injury (EVALI) outbreak. Tobacco Control. Brief Report. 18 Feb. 2021.
https://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/content/early/2021/02/18/tobaccocontrol-2021-056481
“During the outbreak, vape shopping queries were 34% (95% CI 30% to 38%) lower than expected and JUUL shopping queries were 39% (95% CI 34% to 45%) lower than expected…IQOS shopping queries reached a historic high the week they were discussed as a potentially safe alternative to vaping (the week of 29 September 2019), when they were 382% (95% PI: 219–881) above expected rates for the week.”
“These results suggest that unplanned events, such as the EVALI outbreak, can provoke changes in the epidemiology of product usage. Tobacco companies should be prohibited from using events such as disease outbreaks to position their products as less harmful without prior approval.”
Comment: Tobacco companies and their allies position their products to take advantage of unsubstantiated/incomplete information and speculation to sell more of their product, especially through electronic media platforms.
Stephen Hamann
