BELOW Deck star Fraser Olender has reveled he went through a scary hospital dash last month, claiming that vaping caused him to have a heart attack.
The reality personality, 33, says he could have died during the scary ordeal, from which he is still in recovery.
Fraser, who joined Below Deck in 2021 and is the boat’s Chief Steward, took to his Instagram to share the incident with his 250K followers this week as he warned against vaping.
Claiming that the health scare was a result of his use of vapes, Fraser shared pictures from his hospital stint and explained that he was rushed there following severe chest pains.
He wrote: “A few weeks ago I was rushed to hospital due to severe chest pains and difficulties breathing.
“Following this, I spent a week in London hospitals seeing specialists to identify the cause and possible damage of the incident.
“To keep it simple – I had vape poisoning, (an E-cigarette or Vaping-Associated Lung Injury (EVALI)) and I have never experienced fear or pain like it.”
Fraser continued: “Whatever was in my vape caused me to have a coronary artery vasospasm. Medically, that means the arteries supplying blood to my heart suddenly clamped down.
“That spasm reduced blood flow enough to cause an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), better known as a heart attack – not because of a blockage, but because my heart wasn’t getting enough oxygen during the spasm.”
What is a coronary artery spasm?
A coronary artery spasm is when you feel chest tightness or pain caused by tightening of a heart artery.
There can also be arm or jaw pain.
For many, this will go away on it’s own, while others suffer for years. In some cases, this can cause a heart attack.
If the spasm is causing extreme or sudden chest pains, it can be a medical emergency and needs to be checked straight away.
Coronary Artery Spasms can also be called Variant angina or Prinzmetal angina.
What causes this?
- Stress (it can cause the constriction of the coronary arteries if there is too much of the tightening chemics and not enough relaxing chemicals)
- Cold tempratures
- Smoking or using tobacco
- Exercise
- Occasionally linked to the menstrual cycle
What are the symptoms?
- Spasms may be silent or can result in chest pain
- If the spasm lasts long enough, it can cause a heart attack
What are the risks of vaping?
While vapes don’t carry the same risks as tobacco, experts have warned that vaping might not be so harmless after all.
- It could damage heart health. Some of the chemicals found in vapes can be damaging to the heart, with the American Heart Association (AHA) stating that vaping is “as harmful to the body’s cardiovascular systems as cigarettes.
- It could slow down brain development. Vaping nicotine can permanently affect brain development in people under the age of 25, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- It could lead to tooth decay. Dr Michael Heffernan, a dentist at The Wessex Dental Specialist Care, said most vapes contain dangerous chemicals that can harm your teeth and lead to decay.
- It could cause lung disease. Vaping from a young age could leave children with breathing difficulties, with paediatric respiratory consultant Dr Mike McKean saying he’d seen reports of people developing lung disease related to vaping.
Researchers from the US also found that young people who vape are more at risk of bronchitis, inflammation of the airways, and shortness of breath.
Read more on how vaping can affect your health here.
Source: BHF
The TV personality said that he is “grateful” to be recovering, and hopes to be a voice of reason for others to “rethink” vaping.
Detailing how the scare has changed his outlook, Fraser wrote: “I haven’t touched a vape since this happened and never will.
“The pain I endured for 24 hours was inexplicable, 2 rounds of morphine didn’t touch the sides and eventually had to be given the strongest pain relief legal to administer in ER – and that only brought my pain from a 10 to a 7.
“I could have died for the sake of something so ridiculously stupid, so please do yourselves a favour and give it up too – cold turkey.”
Fraser rounded off the post by urging his followers to “be safe” and thanked fans for their support.
He added that since dropping his vaping habit his skin has “never been brighter or clearer”.
Fans and friends took to the comment section to send their well-wishes and support, including Denise Welch.
“Honestly Fraser this is sooooo important,” wrote the Loose Women star before recalling a story about a friend of hers who had suffered stroke-like systems after vaping.
Made In Chelsea’s Lucy Watson and Love Island’s Montana Brown were also amongst those commenting on the post.
