r/whatisit • u/AmoebaSuccessful3393 • 6h ago

New, what is it? What are these little plastic things i have found in my sons room

Post image

I have found a few of these little plastic things scattered around my 15 year old sons room, and was wondering what they are?

11.4k Upvotes

92% Upvoted

1.7k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

170

u/OogaBBooga27 6h ago

My 18 year old cousin just recovered from a collapsed lung that the doctors told her was a result of "blebs" in her lung lining, which were caused by years of vaping as a teen! It was the first I'd ever heard of it. Thankfully she's doing ok now and has quit vaping.

117

u/DIRTYDOGG-1 6h ago

Ok....so i went and did the research on what the heck is a "Bleb".....: "Pulmonary blebs are small, thin-walled, air-filled sacs that form on the outer surface of the lungs, typically in the upper lobes. They are usually asymptomatic until one ruptures, which allows air to leak into the chest cavity and causes a collapsed lung (pneumothorax) resulting in sudden chest pain and shortness of breath"... .HOLY HELL ! ...

22

u/Koala-Available 6h ago

Myself, my son and my brother have had 5 collapsed lungs and 5 pleurodesis operations as a result of what we know assume is a genetic propensity to such blebs

18

u/the_baberuthless 5h ago

Im really sorry they gave such a serious condition an incredibly silly name 

3

u/eyesRus 3h ago

A bleb is really just any air- or fluid-filled protrusion, not just on the lungs. They are not usually serious at all, outside of the lungs. In fact, sometimes we create them on purpose in the eyecare world!

But you’re right, it is a silly-sounding word!

2

u/CricketsAreJaded 5h ago

My husband and FIL have blebs too. Never seen another family who had them also.

38

u/throw7694728 6h ago

It says they're often found in healthy young people but also linked to vaping and smoking. You can get them anyway

13

u/TheVadonkey 5h ago

Well sure but what are the statistics behind each? I can get lung cancer by doing nothing but smoking is still going to increase that risk, so a dumb idea regardless.

13

u/ClassicGlass4313 6h ago

"Also linked to vaping and smoking"

Is that catch all, "this happens anyway. But we can use it here so we will."

14

u/gotuptooearly 5h ago

I wonder what actually causes them. I vaped nicotine for about 6 years that it took me to quit smoking/nic and I've been vaping weed since 2014ish. Doctors say they can't tell I ever smoked at all and my lungs look amazing now.

13

u/throw7694728 5h ago

It says there's no known cause but tall, young and thin men/teenagers are at higher risk

4

u/Obant 3h ago

Yessss for once being an old fat man has benefits.

3

u/-Kerosun- 4h ago

Is that for the collapsed lung? Because yeah, tall, thin young men are at much higher risk of it spontaneously happening, but does that also apply to the "bleps"?

4

u/throw7694728 3h ago

It applies to the bleps. Collapsed lung can be a result of the bleps, but I read that the bleps themselves are more prevalent in tall thin men.

1

u/-Kerosun- 3h ago

Thanks!

5

u/throw7694728 3h ago

Someone ask another question I like saying Blep

2

u/gotuptooearly 5h ago

That's interesting. I'm a thin woman, but that's still a bit of a difference in body composition there.

3

u/DanishDennis 5h ago

It happened to me, didn't vape but smoked prior. I think it happened because I did a huge jump on MTB the day before, and something might have popped. Doctor told me it basically only happens to men, and as the other user said, usually tall and skinny men.

1

u/gotuptooearly 5h ago

That's so weird! Now that I'm reading more comments, I vaguely remember driving my younger sister to the hospital when she was in highschool to visit a friend who had something pop in his lungs 

2

u/DanishDennis 5h ago

Yeah it's pretty common - the nurse that saw me was pretty much the expert in those kind of cases. I think the bad cases are just extremely rare. But collapsed lungs are like one of the most common bicycle injury it's actually insane.

3

u/throw7694728 5h ago

It doesn't mean you can't get them but since you've quit vaping you're probably fine. I vape like a fiend and want to quit so bad, looking into this just made me want to quit even more

1

u/gotuptooearly 5h ago

Idk from what other people are linking it seems like it's only men, and vaping causes complications with it and not the thing itself?

3

u/throw7694728 5h ago

It's not only men, men are just at higher risk. The same way that women are at higher risk for breast cancer but men can still get it

1

u/gotuptooearly 5h ago

Ok ok, unlikely. I don't think I'm getting it as a woman in her 40s lol. So for the comments at the start of this thread saying a blanket "vaping causes this thing" I don't think it does.

3

u/Agitated-One4841 5h ago

My cousin had one years ago when she was about 17, so it definitely happens women. The doctor at the time told her it happens men more often because they tend to be taller. I'm almost certain she was told that it's not the being tall itself that does it, it's how quickly of a growth spurt you have in adolescence. 

1

u/NobodyKnowsImFamous 4h ago

Wonder if it’s connective tissue related?

3

u/throw7694728 4h ago

I read that yes, having connective tissue disorders can predispose you to bleps. If anyone else has more questions, I'm the Reddit research guy today

6

u/_nananan 5h ago

This article says rapid growing when you’re a teen can cause them, and then the vaping can cause them to get punctured: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/what-does-vaping-do-to-your-lungs

2

u/TheCrazyWulf 4h ago

Just like how millions smoked at least a pack a day for 50+yrs and lived to be old...Then there are the poor fucks that never smoked in their lives who die from lung cancer at 30. The world is a weird place

2

u/gotuptooearly 4h ago

Yeah, all of my grandparents and great grandparents were insane chainsmokers and lived into their 90s and died from unrelated causes so genetics is probably some kind of large factor too. Felt like I was pretty predisposed for smoking though, looking back haha.

2

u/tisij 4h ago

my dad starting smoking when he was nine years old and finally quit in his 50s, but switched to vaping. he recently got his lungs checked out after my grandpa died from lung cancer and they found zero evidence that he had ever smoked a day in his life. lungs were perfectly healthy and showed no signs of damage, chronic or otherwise. the human body is weird and largely unpredictable it seems

2

u/ExerciseOriginal9441 3h ago

There is this 99 year old who still smokes. So smoking and getting 99 years old must be related somehow.

1

u/raideo 3h ago

Why are doctors looking at your lungs?

1

u/Omnom_Omnath 3h ago

very big "i smoke a pack of cigs a day and didnt get cancer" energy

0

u/gotuptooearly 3h ago

Ok, sorry? I've seen studies about vaping not causing long term damage, but I'm not out to prove anything. Just talking about my experience, which is why I said I wonder. Not "this happened to me so you're wrong."

2

u/Omnom_Omnath 3h ago

lmao no such study exists. what you read was likely a puff piece paid for by the tobacco industry. Same folks who paid drs to say that cigs didnt cause cancer.

"Thank you for smoking" is a great book on it, and they made it into a movie if thats more your style

0

u/Long_Board4207 3h ago

Fyi this is from dispoables with too much flavoring and distlatte carts with too many terpenes that cause more inflammation 

11

u/archnemisis11 6h ago

From a lazy person this morning, thank you for looking that up for me. lol

6

u/DanishDennis 5h ago

This happened to me. Wasn't a fun time. Pretty much only happens to men, and it's somewhat genetic. (Happened to my dad in his 20's)

38

u/No_Royal8268 6h ago

A friend's son in college put a hole in his lung from vaping. So many people think it's harmless.

-3

u/LeanLeftLoveLife 6h ago

Prove it. I've asked that a 1000 times and not one persons provided the friend lol untrue

9

u/Top-Sundae8531 6h ago

My cousin did it. 22 his lung collapsed twice. He was very sick.

1

u/Long_Board4207 3h ago

Its the flavoring from dispoables. Stick to pod systems with refillable pods. The ejuice has less flavoring which is the norm. Dispos overflavor to get rid of burnt tastes and coils. Imagine inhaling an overflavored dispo with a burnt coil that you can’t taste. You guys think so black and white its insane. 

8

u/archnemisis11 6h ago

Tbf, even doctors can't tell you the person due to HIPAA laws (in the U.S.). Putting someone on blast for the internet also wouldn't make them a good friend.

2

u/Unhappy_County1654 5h ago

With the anonymity of the Internet you lose nothing but credibility

2

u/Zestyclose_Car2269 5h ago

Anonymous credibility is a bit of a misnomer. You're anonymous on Reddit to negate credibility, among other things but quite obviously many ppl go with that. Unless we're talking Karma which is ofc in this scenario merely a Reddit construct of situational credibility.

12

u/Milknhoneyaus 5h ago

A quick search on any search engine of your choice brings up hundreds of articles,  and literally dozens of peer reviewed papers on it. 

But you do you boo.

3

u/Long_Board4207 3h ago

If you read the studies you wouldn’t be thinking so black and white… don’t vape dispoables that overflavor to get rid of the burnt coil taste. Stick to refillable pods systems and avoid distillate carts because they add too many terpenes which causes inflammation. Stick to rosin or resin.  You guys should read and ask your doctors about this smh. Typical Redditors embracing the dunning kruger effect 

4

u/DanishDennis 5h ago

Happened to me. Not from vaping, but I smoked for 12-13 years prior. It was around 9 years ago. Right lung collapsed at night I think. Woke up with insane pain, and couldn't breathe properly. Luckily only half the lung collapsed so it wasn't severe. Same thing happened to my dad in his 20's, but the entire lung. He almost died from it. He also smoked a lot.

I read the vaping comments while vaping... Probably time to quit that sht. Doctors said back then that if it happened once, you're twice as likely to have it happen again.

1

u/Long_Board4207 3h ago

Its the flavoring from dispoables. Stick to pod systems with refillable pods. The ejuice has less flavoring which is the norm. Dispos overflavor to get rid of burnt tastes and coils. Imagine inhaling an overflavored dispo with a burnt coil that you can’t taste. You guys think so black and white its insane.  Also my doctor told me the same go ask your doctor sheesh

0

u/Long_Board4207 3h ago

They can’t provide proof because they think so black and white. Reddit has a lot of this its insane and why many people don’t take this app seriously. Check out my other replies here

0

u/Long_Board4207 3h ago

These people don’t read enough to realize that its from more inflammation from dispoables with too much flavoring (thats why people get refillable pods) or distillate carts that have too many terpenes or looks thin.  

Regular stuff will give you some lung inflammation when you’re older but not a hole in your lungs smh. 

1

u/adgarbault 5h ago

What was he vaping? Was it illicit the carts tainted with vitamin E acetate?

-6

u/yeknom02 6h ago

Met up with some work colleagues one January for a big group meeting. One of the nicest guys in the group had just started vaping. He died in his sleep that February.

14

u/WatercressFlat571 6h ago

So you think that vaping for a few weeks killed him?

-6

u/yeknom02 6h ago edited 6h ago

It was some sort of respiratory failure so yeah. (Edit: I don't know how long he had been vaping before January. Under a year for sure.)

3

u/WatercressFlat571 6h ago

There's no way that happened. There are millions of people that vape for 20+ years with no issues. People jump at every opportunity to blame vapes for any type of lung disease or issue. Why not actually read what studies show? While it's definitely harmful, it's no way near traditional smoking in toxicity. So all the stories here about people that vaped for a while and got serious lung diseases are def not true. If that was the case and could be proven, trust me, you would hear everywhere about it. Big tobacco companies are trying to take down the vape industry for years, this would be the perfect oportunity.

1

u/yeknom02 5h ago

Good for everyone who's vaping and living. I'm glad they're doing well and hopefully they're thriving. Maybe a number of them are former smokers and are actually increasing their lifespan. Statistically speaking maybe vaping is ultimately harmless. I certainly have friends who vape, and I don't say anything to them because I know they'd be smoking otherwise.

Doesn't change the fact that my coworker was one of the outliers and now he's gone. Respiratory failure caused by *something*, and I am mighty suspicious his sudden vaping addiction was a factor.

10

u/Ambitious_Tea_4584 6h ago

Bro are you implying vaping killed him cause that’s wild.

2

u/islobojono 6h ago

People making their own liquid and safely vape for years, then when new generation pickup vaping, suddenly lungs start popping left and right, people start dying. It is so wierd. What are these people vaping nowadays?

1

u/silverilian 6h ago

Vaping can cause serious lung injury in teens known as EVALI (E-cigarette or Vaping Use-Associated Lung Injury). It is often irreversible and sometimes fatal.

-2

u/Outside_Jacket_8661 6h ago

So why did I get my lungs checked with a full work up by pulmonologist after Covid and vaping for years to be told my lungs were in perfect health? (Side note - also was a longtime smoker for decades before vaping). Interesting

15

u/blackra560 5h ago

mfer doesn't know the difference between the words "can" and "will"

-8

u/Outside_Jacket_8661 5h ago

Btch who you callin a mfer? FY

10

u/mirandalikesplants 6h ago

Could be lots of factors. Genes, luck, just didn’t catch up to you yet. Even if a certain action has a 90% likelihood of harm, 10% are still getting away with it.

8

u/AndreiVissarionovich 5h ago

Because everybody is different. Some people smoke for 70 years and never get cancer or bronchitis or emphysema. Other people smoke for 10 years and spend the rest of their lives talking through a hole in their throat. Some people will take a medication and feel better than ever, other people will take that medication and suffer the full list of sped-up fine print text at the end of the commercial.

Your lack of serious harm- so far- from smoking and vaping doesn't mean these things aren't terribly dangerous. The vast differences from person to person are why we don't gauge these things anecdotally, but systematically, with samples of tens of thousands of people. Because when you average out the outcomes of tens of thousands of smokers/vapers vs. tens of thousands of non-smokers/vapers, the trend becomes clear and isn't disguised by the randomness of subjective, individual experience.

-4

u/Outside_Jacket_8661 5h ago

Yes all true. My post was more of a rhetorical one than an actual “hey I need the internet to give me scientific answers to my dilemma”…needless to say I like your posted answer.

7

u/Benbeanbenbean 5h ago

Hmm interesting people think guns are dangerous when I didn’t get shot at all yesterday! Open your eyes sheeple!

6

u/sillykittyball 5h ago

Someone as dumb as you has to have some good luck some time.

5

u/I_need_french-fries 5h ago

Depends on the person and their genetics. It increases your chances of having lung issues but it doesn't guarantee it. I've seen people that smoked for only a few years and develop serious problems. I also know many people smoking for over 50 years without issues. It's just matter of you being willing to assume the added risk.

5

u/islobojono 6h ago

What are these kids vaping? Youngins always collapse their lungs.

2

u/IPlayChessBTW 3h ago

Anytime vaping and serious lung issues are mentioned (hole in lung, popcorn lung, collapsed lung, etc) it's generally safe to assume it's a black market THC cartridge that has been cut with vitamin E acetate to make it thicker. Teens usually admit to vaping after getting sent to the hospital, but they don't admit to what they were vaping because they are concerned with getting into more trouble. 

The evidence would suggest those issues are incredibly rare from normal nicotine vapes (whether salt nicotine or free base). 

14

u/Arafel_Electronics 6h ago

at least in my day we just stunk and coughed a lot from real cigarettes, no hospitalization or anything

29

u/OogaBBooga27 6h ago

Yes the hospital comes much later for the true smoker haha

5

u/Better-Lunch670 6h ago

Most of them skip the hospital stay and go straight to the morgue before they'll give up a cig.

-3

u/parallelogramm3r 6h ago

My ex’s grandmother smoked two packs of unfiltered cigs a day and lived to be 95 with no major medical conditions. The same ex’s dad died in a lawnmower accident in his 30’s.

2

u/Arafel_Electronics 5h ago

or we quit before then

the point is we're not 18 years old in a hospital with a friggin collapsed lung

3

u/Burntoastedbutter 5h ago

Are we finally in the timeline where people are finding out the results of vaping? I remember like 10 years ago, everyone still kept saying it's pretty much 'harmless' compared to smoking cigarettes... Hell, a lot of people still say that!

2

u/LouisesBelcher 4h ago

Well, compared to inhaling tar and carbon monoxide, the latter of which are byproducts of tobacco, they are still comparatively ‘better’ than cigarettes. Which says a lot about cigarettes when we’re here talking about spontaneous collapsed lungs.

Vapes aren’t risk free by a long shot. For regular smokers, vapes are the ‘better’ option. For the non smoking population, neither is a good, harmless option.

Harm reduction isn’t about searching for a risk free option, it’s about searching for the least worse option lol

2

u/Burntoastedbutter 4h ago

I'm not talking about people who say vapes are less harmless than ciggs because that IS true. I'm talking about people who say vapes are completely harmless. You know, just like the people who want to believe weed is a miracle addiction-free drug lol

1

u/PlayboyWaldi 4h ago

That idiot probably used fake catridges with banned chemicals.

1

u/Broke_n-Old6824 6h ago

I think they call it popcorn lung don’t they, or am I thinking of something else?

4

u/islobojono 6h ago

Popcorn lung is from diactyl buttery flavour.

1

u/donkeypunchare 4h ago

I just picture a flying popcorn bucket lol

2

u/fredSanford6 6h ago

No one who vapes anything nicotine based has ever gotten popcorn lung. There where traces of some of the chemical that can cause it in higher levels found in custard creamy flavors and the manufacturers all swapped to a non containing version even before any reports of it happening. Smokers are exposed to a much higher level of it. People that get it have worked in popcorn factory environments without PPE fitted properly and fake butter flavor was inhaled often.

Another issue was vitamin E used to add to THC vape cartridges by mostly black market manufacturers who didn't understand it's not good for the lungs. Many people got sick from that. Often those people blaming it on regular vaping to misdirect THC usage. It happened with a bunch of Kenosha Wisconsin made bootlegger ones yet the legal state Illinois had regulations to make that not legal and considered adulterating the product. It's like the old days with alcohol where methanol was an issue but the government ordered the methanol added just the bootleggers didn't remove it well enough sometimes. Safe legal access is safer than bans. Heck look at the opioid crisis now. Safe access with help would prevent so many deaths

3

u/ClassicGlass4313 6h ago

The bootleggers didnt add it. They bought the Vegetable Glycerin from Walmart where it has a Vit E additive as its sold as lotion.

Thats not what real manufacturers use for VG.

1

u/fredSanford6 4h ago

No they did add it. There were some companies that made and marketed a thickening agent that was vitamin E based.

2

u/Broke_n-Old6824 5h ago

Oh ok thanks for the info. Interesting

1

u/BigRedHD 5h ago

Popcorn lungs is accurate, whether or not you can or want to believe the information the “child defense fund” puts out, they ran a story about this exact issue a few years back. Hell in California trees are 100% legal but god forbid you attempt to get flavored nicotine products, and what is legally sold is taxed 300%.
And the management of the so called opioid crisis. How about properly educate those who are prescribed them in the first place considering everyone’s gotten so many MMR shots and been boosterd in to oblivion their brains don’t work anymore. It’s not just those poor souls, but these kids being raised by their iPads with unfettered access to what ever idiotic information someone posts on the internet presenting it as fact peer pressure, peer pressure. So instead just like nicotine instead of allowing free market, opioid patients are “weened off” or rather their prescription is cut by 80% the month new recommendations come out from the DEA. Now they’re forced with two options as the doctors evidently are more concerned with their licenses than patient care. 1 live in perpetual pain, or 2 buy fentanyl laced trash off the streets creating the perfect smoke screen to justify saying there is an opioid crisis.
Let’s just be honest, the correlation between California being a sanctuary state and it’s open boarder policy demonstrates the causation, fentanyl moved freely into California and spreads across the country from the west and all these cluck heads want to put up their governor for president. Sorry don’t believe in coincidence, stack the deck against your population blame them for the government you broke than tell them you know exactly how to fix it. It’s politics at its finest divide, suppress and concur, Joseph Stalin wet dream!