美国国家公共电台 NPR Some States With Legal Weed Embrace Vaping Bans, Warn Of Black Market Risks

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

The Centers for Disease Control say most of the cases of respiratory illness from vaping are linked to products containing THC, the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. People have gotten sick even in states where marijuana sales are legal and where marijuana must undergo some quality testing. Will Stone brings us the story of a man who got sick in Washington State, where recreational pot has been sold since 2014.

WILL STONE, BYLINE¹: About two years ago, Charles Wilcoxen turned to vaping marijuana, believing it would be better than smoking it.

CHARLES WILCOXEN: I felt that vaping was a safer alternative. It was - I truly believed that.

STONE: Wilcoxen would buy the vape cartridges² from Washington's legal marijuana shops, where they're tested for things like mold. The 44-year-old is an Army veteran and runner, and he was in good health until one day last month. After vaping, Wilcoxen became sick very quickly. He started wheezing³. Soon he was nauseous and running a fever.

WILCOXEN: I felt miserable⁴. You know, it was, like, flu-like symptoms.

STONE: After a few days he began to wonder, could it be the vape?

WILCOXEN: And I used the same device, same cartridges that I'd been using in the past.

STONE: The next day, he woke up and could barely breathe.

WILCOXEN: Literally⁵ I would take five steps and have to hunch⁶ over and try to catch my breath.

STONE: Wilcoxen ended up spending three days in the hospital. Doctors found buildup in his lungs and sent it for tests.

WILCOXEN: It all came back positive results for lipoid pneumonia⁷, which was indicative for - from the vaping. You know, it's where it came from.

STONE: Lipoid pneumonia, the same respiratory condition identified in some others who have fallen ill after vaping. Wilcoxen decided⁸ to sue. He's going after six companies. All have a role in manufacturing or distributing the vaping device or the cartridges that contain a liquid form of THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. Public health agencies have traced many cases of vaping illnesses back to THC products, some bought on the black market.

Testing has shown those illicit⁹ THC cartridges can contain cutting agents like vitamin E acetate, which isn't safe to inhale¹⁰. But Wilcoxen says he only went to state-licensed stores. Washington requires that labs test marijuana for potency¹² and certain contaminants, but not other chemicals added to the liquid THC.

SHANNON STEVENS: There is no requirement to test for any sort of cutting agent.

STONE: Shannon Stevens is laboratory director for Confidence Analytics, which has a state license¹¹ to test cannabis products in Washington.

STEVENS: I would be surprised to learn that an illegal product in our retail¹³ stores had been identified as having been cut like this, but I definitely wouldn't exclude the possibility.

STONE: Like other states, Washington is trying to identify what harmful chemicals might be in vaping products. In the meantime, the state has passed a four-month emergency ban on flavored vaping products. It applies to both nicotine¹⁴ and THC. Dr. Kathy Lofy is the state health officer for Washington.

KATHY LOFY: While we don't yet know exactly what's causing severe lung injury, we did like the option of banning flavors because we know that, you know, youth are very attracted to the flavors.

STONE: But the state's public health leaders acknowledged that prohibiting flavors won't necessarily stop the current outbreak of illnesses. Ziva Cooper directs the UCLA Cannabis Research Initiative.

ZIVA COOPER: There is this risk when you ban something that people will be driven to the black market.

STONE: Even in states where cannabis is regulated, Cooper says the market is fraught¹⁵ with problems. People are walking into stores and buying neatly¹⁶ packaged products that look legit.

COOPER: They think that they can trust what's on the labels. But the truth is is that the labels don't necessarily accurately¹⁷ portray¹⁸ what's actually in the products.

STONE: For now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is keeping warnings about vaping brought. At a recent congressional hearing, CDC's deputy director Dr. Anne Schuchat said while most cases are linked to the black market, her agency doesn't yet have a clear picture of the risks where marijuana is legal.

ANNE SCHUCHAT: Whether the substances that are in products that are completely unregulated by the states are riskier¹⁹ than the products that are regulated by the states, I don't think we have good data either way.

STONE: Until more is known, those who vape need to realize that no matter where they, live the safety regulations vary. And testing, even in states where pot is legal, has not necessarily caught up with whatever might be causing the current outbreak of illness. For NPR News, I'm Will Stone in Seattle.

SIMON: And that story comes to us from NPR's reporting partnership²⁰ with Kaiser Health News.

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1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 cartridges   

子弹( cartridge的名词复数 )； （打印机的）墨盒； 录音带盒； （唱机的）唱头

参考例句：

• computer consumables such as disks and printer cartridges 如磁盘、打印机墨盒之类的电脑耗材
• My new video game player came with three game cartridges included. 我的新电子游戏机附有三盘游戏带。

3 wheezing   

v.喘息，发出呼哧呼哧的喘息声( wheeze的现在分词 )；哮鸣

参考例句：

• He was coughing and wheezing all night. 他整夜又咳嗽又喘。
• A barrel-organ was wheezing out an old tune. 一架手摇风琴正在呼哧呼哧地奏着一首古老的曲子。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

5 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

6 hunch   

n.预感，直觉

参考例句：

• I have a hunch that he didn't really want to go.我有这么一种感觉，他并不真正想去。
• I had a hunch that Susan and I would work well together.我有预感和苏珊共事会很融洽。

7 pneumonia   

n.肺炎

参考例句：

• Cage was struck with pneumonia in her youth.凯奇年轻时得过肺炎。
• Pneumonia carried him off last week.肺炎上星期夺去了他的生命。

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 illicit   

adj.非法的，禁止的，不正当的

参考例句：

• He had an illicit association with Jane.他和简曾有过不正当关系。
• Seizures of illicit drugs have increased by 30% this year.今年违禁药品的扣押增长了30%。

10 inhale   

v.吸入(气体等)，吸(烟)

参考例句：

• Don't inhale dust into your lung.别把灰尘吸进肺里。
• They are pleased to not inhale second hand smoke.他们很高兴他们再也不会吸到二手烟了。

11 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

12 potency   

n. 效力，潜能

参考例句：

• Alcohol increases the drug's potency.酒精能增加这种毒品的效力。
• Sunscreen can lose its potency if left over winter in the bathroom cabinet.如果把防晒霜在盥洗室的壁橱里放一个冬天，就有可能失效。

13 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

14 nicotine   

n.(化)尼古丁，烟碱

参考例句：

• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily.许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。
• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily.许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。

15 fraught   

adj.充满…的，伴有(危险等)的；忧虑的

参考例句：

• The coming months will be fraught with fateful decisions.未来数月将充满重大的决定。
• There's no need to look so fraught!用不着那么愁眉苦脸的！

16 neatly   

adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地

参考例句：

• Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。
• The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。

17 accurately   

adv.准确地，精确地

参考例句：

• It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
• Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。

18 portray   

v.描写，描述；画(人物、景象等)

参考例句：

• It is difficult to portray feelings in words.感情很难用言语来描写。
• Can you portray the best and worst aspects of this job?您能描述一下这份工作最好与最坏的方面吗？

19 riskier   

冒险的，危险的( risky的比较级 )

参考例句：

• Now they are starting to demand higher returns on riskier assets. 而今他们开始在风险更高的资产上要求更高的回报。
• The problem with that: RIM's business is getting riskier every quarter. 不过问题也随之而来：RIM面临的业务风险正逐季增大。

20 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。