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CDC: Major Spike In E-Cigarette-Related Calls To Poison Hotlines

CDC: Major Spike In E-Cigarette-Related Calls To Poison Hotlines
Calls to the nation's poison control centers involving e-cigarettes rose from one per month in September 2010 to 215 in February 2014, according to a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A new CDC report says calls to the nation's poison control centers involving e-cigarettes rose from one per month in September 2010 to 215 per month in February of this year.

More than half of the calls involved children age 5 and younger.

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E-cigarettes use a nicotine-laced juice to create vapor. The juice comes in a variety of flavors like chocolate and blueberry muffin.

Richard Clark, medical director of the San Diego division of the California Poison Control System, said liquid nicotine can be very dangerous for young children.

"So if the kid didn’t drink it, but just got it spilled all over him, and didn’t get it washed off quickly, it could be absorbed through the skin, and they could get toxic through that, as well," Clark said.

Clark says less than a teaspoon of liquid nicotine could make a kid violently ill.

E-cigarettes are not regulated by the FDA. Containers of e-cigarette juice are not required to have childproof caps.

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The makers of e-cigarettes say the devices can help tobacco smokers kick the habit.