A 30-year-old mom was left with the lungs of 'someone in their 80s' after she picked up a vaping habit during coronavirus lockdowns.
Despite the fact she'd never smoked before, Hannah Roth, from Newport, Tennessee, began vaping during the pandemic to help deal with 'the stress of being stuck in the house'.
Before long, Roth found she was 'addicted' and vaping 'at least every hour, every day'.
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However, it wasn't until four years after she began vaping that she realized the impacts of the habit, when she started getting 'cold chills' and noticed her lungs were 'making this popping sound' every time she took a breath.
Recalling her declining health, Roth said: "I thought I may have bronchitis because my chest hurt really bad. That went on for a few days and then I went to the doctors and they said I had the flu and gave me medicine.
"I was meant to get better but I got worse. I had a fever of 104°F (40°C) and my mom made me go to the hospital and she said 'there's something else wrong with you'."
After Roth went back to the hospital's emergency department in Scott County, doctors informed her she had an obstruction in her right lung.
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"They said it was pneumonia," she said. "It looks like a tree with branches, it's called 'tree budding' and it's basically the deterioration of your lung.
"It's not supposed to happen unless you're a really heavy smoker."
A doctor asked Roth whether she vaped, and when she said 'yes' he responded: "That's why you have pneumonia."
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"He told me that if I kept on [vaping] then I was going to die pretty much," Roth said. "He took my vape out of my purse and threw it in the trash can.
"He said 'if you keep smoking these then you're not going to be able to breathe'."
The doctor showed Roth the scans of her lungs and pointed out they didn't look like they should for a 30-year-old woman, but instead of someone who had been 'a smoker of ten years'.
"I looked like I had the lungs of someone in their 80s, someone much older, when he showed me that first scan.
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"I was really mad at myself because I had no idea that vaping could do that," Roth said.
She continued: "The doctor told me 'every time that you're hitting that vape, that vapour is going into your lungs and it's like frying hot chicken in there'. The intensity of it was frying my lungs.
"That's why it was making a popping sound when I was breathing."
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The mom admitted the news was 'quite scary', and she knew she 'couldn't vape again' as she had to make sure she could take care of her kids.
Since her trip to the hospital in April, Roth has been vape free and her lungs no longer make the 'popping sound' they had when she'd been using the device.
She's hoping to spread awareness of the negative impacts of vapes, saying: "The doctor said if I stop vaping, my lungs will be able to heal as long as I don't vape anymore.
"I still get cravings for the vape but I chew a lot of gum and that helps. Overall I feel a lot healthier and I'm saving money now too because I'm not buying a vape every week.
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"My advice would be just don't vape, don't pick it up and hit it. Even if you think you have control over it, sometimes you just don't."
Emily Brown