Ban of Vitamin E.
Ban of Vitamin E. Acetate Found in THC Overwhelmingly Passes in the House BY ASHLEY A. ATTISHA, ESQ The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) announced Feb. 20 the fourth death associated with the outbreak of E-cigarette or vaping-associated lung injury. Vitamin E acetate, which can be purchased legally, is safely consumed in food and applied to the skin in cosmetic products. When it comes to vaping, Vitamin E acetate can be used as a filler added to THC vaping cartridges—it’s primarily used to dilute potency. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified vitamin E acetate as strongly associated with vaping-related lung injury. Vitamin E acetate “may interfere with normal lung functioning,” according to the CDC. Michigan state Reps. Abdullah Hammoud (D-Dearborn), Frank Liberati (D-Allen Park) and Joseph Bellino (R-Monroe), sponsored a trio of bills: HB 5159, HB 5160 and HB 5161, which passed in the Michigan House in early February. Lawmakers approved three bills that would ban the processing and sale of any marijuana or tobacco products that contains vitamin E acetate, making it a misdemeanor punishable by fines of up to ,000. The legislation passed with a wide majority, clearing the House chamber in 102-2 votes. The bill has moved to the Senate. This legislation is a great first step to address health risks posed for youth and adults inhaling products which contain vitamin E acetate. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services recommends the following: E-cigarette and/or vaping products should never be used by youth, young adults or women who are pregnant. Vitamin E acetate should not be added to e- cigarette or vaping products. Additionally, people should not add any other substances not intended by the manufacturer to products, including products purchased through retail establishments. While it appears that vitamin E acetate is associated with many of the lung injury cases, there are many different substances and product sources being investigated, and there may be more than one cause. Therefore, the best way for people to ensure that they are not at risk while the investigation continues is to consider refraining from the use of all e-cigarette and vaping products. Adults who continue to use an e-cigarette and vaping products should carefully monitor themselves for symptoms, such as such as shortness of breath, chest pain, cough, fever and/or nausea and vomiting, and see a healthcare provider immediately if they develop symptoms like those reported in this outbreak. If you or a loved one is seeking assistance to quit tobacco use and vaping please call the Michigan Tobacco Quitline 1-800-784-8669. Teenagers can text “Start My Quit” to 855- 891-9989 or visit www.mylifemyquit.com for resources to quit vaping. Opioid Crisis Demands Attention BY RONY FOUMIA, RPH All of us are sick and tired of seeing people we love lose their lives needlessly to opioid overdoses. Everyone in our community knows someone or has heard of someone dying because of an opioid overdose. Enough is enough! Let’s stop waiting for others to fix this issue and let’s do all we can to educate our youth. One thing I have learned over the years is that opioid addiction shows no prejudice. It is impacting every sector of our society, including Chaldeans. You’ll find people struggling with this horrible disease in Detroit, Royal Oak, West Bloomfield and all over this state and nation. Most People don’t realize addicted individuals to drugs suffer from a true, chronic disease. They are battling an illness no different than those with high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes. This is why we have to change the stigma that is associated with it. Some of the words that describe those that are suffering through addiction are “a junkie” or “ a druggie.”To change this stigma, let’s change how we refer to people that are suffering. The appropriate terminology is they are suffering from a “Substance Use Disorder” (SUD) or an “Opioid Use Disorder” (OUD) for those addicted to opioids. Most of these people want to get healthy but they simply can’t as their brain chemistry has changed and it takes time to heal it back to normal as they battle the disease. Another thing that I learned is that we can throw all of the money in the world at this and it is not enough. We can set all of the laws in the world at this and it is not enough. The question that I receive many times is what can parents do to help protect their children and to prevent them from getting addicted in the first place? Education to PREVENT addiction is the key! As moms and dads are working hard to provide for their families, the day to day struggles of work and balancing that with raising children is never easy. Combine that with the influence of smart phones and social media apps, it makes a parent’s job even more difficult to shelter them from harm. What are some of the things you can do as a parent to help prevent your child from getting addicted? It’s never too early to talk to your youth about the dangers of addiction. We started talking to our children when they were younger than 10 years old and we discuss it almost daily. Every child is different as children mature at different rates. It is important to get to them early to let them know it is not ok to use drugs and that they can become addicted quickly. Keep the conversation going. Know the signs and risks of opioid use and the behaviors that surround it (including heroin). RONY FOUMIA, RPH SPECIAL TO THE CHALDEAN NEWS Many times we ignore these obvious signs right in front of our eyes. Examples include: Losing interest in activities they once enjoyed; failing to fulfill family obligations and a loss of relationships; putting themselves in risky situations; looking at their phone waiting for messages, nervously; changing in the group of friends they interact with and they dropped the old friends; acting distant, aggressive or angry all of the time; breaking rules; physical changes such as weight loss, shakes and tremors; eye pupils become pinpoints (constrict) and they are always wearing sunglasses, even indoors. Other signs include: Track marks (little needle marks on the hands, arms, legs etc.); frequent flulike symptoms; lack of hygiene; change in sleep habits (prolonged or limited); changes in spending habits; frequently lying; money missing at home; changes in work habits and you hear they are skipping work; wearing warm clothing even though it is hot outside and skipping school. Educating Kids And Preventing Addiction One of the most common ways people get addicted to opioids is through the use of prescription opioids (whether they were prescribed for them or not). It is estimated that 80 percent of heroin addicted individuals at one point used prescription opioid medications first. Sporting injuries are common in children. Before an opioid is prescribed to your child, ask a lot of questions. By law, a doctor has to have parents sign 30 CHALDEAN NEWS APRIL 2020
COMMUNITYStrong communities are the foundation of a healthy, thriving environment. That’s why DTE helps power communities through supporting projects and programs that enhance life. We partner with local leaders to promote initiatives from environmental education to economic development, including neighborhood outreach services. Creative Files: Creative/20-DTE-1304/Community/R1> 2020-03-19-DTE1304-community-9x5.875-BW-R1.indd a form that they were warned about the risk factors Bleed - 0 | 9x5.875 | BW | Rev 1 | Close 2020-03-19 involved with using opioids. Use alternative treatments if possible before opioid use (such as Motrin/ If you have REVISIONS DUE TO AGENCY 2020-03-18 someone Advil, Aleve or Tylenol). If you have someone in your household who in your uses prescription opioids, do not leave them in the medicine cabinet. Get a drug lock box or hide household them in a safe place. If you have opioids at home that are no longer who uses being used, get them out of the home. Almost all police stations take back pill bottles with no questions asked. There are also commercially made prescription products to inactivate drugs to be thrown out in opioids, do the trash afterwards (i.e. Deterra and many others) not leave Make sure you know who your children’s friends are. They need to choose them wisely as the group them in the they hang out with can heavily influence them. It is ok to ask questions about their friends. medicine Have your kids join youth action groups to get more involved and to become leaders amongst cabinet. Get their peers. Kids are more prone to listen to messages from other kids. a drug lock Become more involved in your kids’ lives and have nightly talks or go for walks. Having open box or hide lines of communication without judgment is important. Kids are more likely to share their strug- them in a gles with you. safe place. Someone suffering from Substance Use Disorder (SUD) or Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) will make you think your eyes are lying to you. It is very important to trust your instinct! By increasing awareness and by all of us working together, we can make a difference and save lives. DT ____ CR ____ TR ____ PR ____ AE ____ PREMIUM QUALITY COOLER AND FREEZER GLASS DOORS Raves Cooler Doors is owned by a local member of our community, and we have been serving the Metro Detroit area for seven years. We offer high quality glass doors for merchandising coolers and freezers - we also build complete walk-in cooler and freezer systems that can be customized to fit your exact requirements. Our team of experienced hard-working installers will get your store up and running as quickly as possible, and you can trust us to get the project done right the first time. PRODUCTS WE OFFER · Cooler and freezer glass doors · Walk-in coolers, freezers, and beer caves · Refrigerated kitchen equipment · Retrofit glass doors for open air cases · Deli and bakery cases CONTACT US TODAY TO SPEAK WITH OUR KNOWLEDGEABLE SALES STAFF (248) 887-0648 · 1704 E Highland Rd, Highland, MI 48356 info@ravescoolerdoors.com · www.ravescoolerdoors.com Owned and operated by Ramiz Sheena Raves Cooler Doors are installed in 34 states and counting! APRIL 2020 CHALDEAN NEWS 31
