Some marijuana investors may have quietly suspected the outbreak of hundreds of respiratory illnesses and at least 14 deaths among the "vaping" crowd was closely linked to the usage of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), or the component of marijuana that creates a psychotropic euphoria. But it wasn't until Friday of last week the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explicitly said as much when it warned all consumers to stop vaping any product containing THC.
It's not an outright ban, to be clear, and the FDA concedes it will need to do more work in order to establish a cause and effect relationship. Many of the reported health problems appear to be caused by tainted black-market cannabis, as well.
Nevertheless, given that 76.9% of the 805 reported illnesses reported to date have involved individuals who had combined the use of nicotine and THC within 30 days of their symptoms, it's not a stretch to say consumers will now think twice before taking a drag from a vaporizer -- or vape.