I'd like to know where reporters are getting the 2013 report. The latest report available to the general public is from 2012.
https://aapcc.s3.amazonaws.com/pdfs/annual_reports/2012_NPDS_Annual_Report.pdf
Hmm...if kids are being poisoned by the liquid because it smells good, can anyone explain why in 2012 there were 5,313 reports of children under the age of 6 eating tobacco cigarettes? They don't smell yummy. The truth is that very young kids who refuse to eat veggies that are good for them will pick up and eat some of the nastiest things you can imagine.
Let's put all this in perspective:
In 2012 there were 8,366 reports of "single exposures" to tobacco products, of which 7,308 (86%) involved children under age 6. Of all exposures, 1,514 (18%) were treated in a Health Care Facility, 5 were considered major, 1,691 (20%) were considered minor, and there was 1 death (an 86 year old male.)
There were 1,272 reports of "single exposures" to pharmaceutical nicotine products, of which 672 (52%) involved children under age 6. Of all exposures, 273 (21%) were treated in a Health Care Facility, 2 were considered major, 232 (18%) were considered minor, and there were 0 deaths.
There were 438 reports of "single exposures" to electronic cigarettes / liquid, of which 172 (39%) involved children under age 6. Of all exposures, 112 (26%) were treated in a Health Care Facility, 1 was considered major, 105 (24%) were considered minor, and there was 1 death (suicide of a 29-year old male).
Presumably, the deaths in the tobacco and the e-cigarette product groups were also included in the "major" category for those products.
Judging from the statistics, it doesn't look as if electronic cigarette liquid presents any higher danger of death or even a "major" incident to children than tobacco products or pharmaceutical nicotine.
The story reads
Nationwide, the number of cases linked to e-liquids jumped to 1,351 in 2013, a 300 percent increase from 2012, and the number is on pace to double this year, according to information from the National Poison Data System. Of the cases in 2013, 365 were referred to hospitals, triple the previous year’s number.
For the benefit of those who don't know, when a number triples, it has gone up by 300%. Thus the proportion of cases treated in a health care facility in 2013 ((365/1351)*100 = 27%) is quite similar to the proportion in 2012.
And by the way, the Poison Control Center does not break out the by age the cases that were "Treated in a Health Care Facility." The designations major, minor, and death also are the totals across all age groups. There is no mention of "referred to hospitals" in the Poison Control Centers annual reports. Someone might have gone to their doctor's office or to a Walk-In Clinic--not necessarily have been admitted to a hospital. Just another example of something that reads more like a press release than a news report.
