Morgan Cogo '25, Entertainment Editor
In 2003, Chinese pharmacist Hon Lik created the first e-cigarette as a healthier alternative to conventional smoking. These e-cigarettes have gained immense popularity after their initial invention with the younger crowd—especially teenagers—and are now referred to more commonly as vapes. Though many think that vaping is a lot healthier than smoking, it too can have equally detrimental effects.
The percentage of high schoolers around America who vape has doubled from eight percent to 16 percent in the past year. This is concerning in itself, as the legal age to buy and use vapor products is 18; but to add to the problem even more, the percentage of middle school students vaping has increased from 3.5 percent to 6.1 percent. Though vapes are thought to be a healthier option, they are simply a different composition of harmful chemicals. "Most e-cigarette liquids contain nicotine, a highly addictive drug. Vaping products carry prominent nicotine warnings," Psychiatry.org states.
The effects that it has on adolescent minds and their general health are also a huge concern, as specialists at Mayo Clinic said, "...studies have shown that the adolescent brain is extremely sensitive to the effects of nicotine, including interfering with memory and attention processing. And some research has linked the use of e-cigarettes among youth to later transitioning to using regular cigarettes." Similar to regular cigarettes, vaping can also lead to lung problems such as asthma and—in some rare occurrences—lung cancer. "Vaping coats the lungs with a toxic cocktail that may contain: carcinogenic chemicals – some of the volatile organic compounds…commonly found in vapor, such as benzene and heavy metals," Moffitt Cancer Center reported.
The public opinion on being a cool thing vaping is also diminishing, from government officials FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., in a Sept. 12, 2018 statement placed a priority on curbing the growth in the use by teens, even if that means limiting adult access: "We cannot allow a whole new generation to become addicted to nicotine," Gottlieb said. Even students' peers disapprove of the use of vapes, "If you vape, you personally are a wuss, and are improperly coping with your emotions. There are better ways to do things, and vaping is only temporary," an anonymous junior said.
Perhaps the recent rise of teen vapers is because of how they are marketed. Many studies have found that the promotion of vaping through various mediums such as TV and social media influencers has led to increased positive perceptions of vaping and intentions to use vaping products. "Between 2018 and 2019, JUUL, the most popular e-cigarette brand in North America, spent U.S. $57 million on TV advertisements to promote their products," nursing student of The University of British Columbia Laura Struik said. While JUUL claims that these advertisements are aimed at helping adults find a healthier alternative to smoking, many public health advocates are concerned these advertisements also attract the youth, and research confirms that these advertisements increase exposure to their products, which subsequently increases the likelihood of use by the underaged population. For example, in a recent study, it was found that exposure to vape advertisements among youth is not uncommon, with 28 percent of youth in the United States, 17 percent of youth in Canada, and 21 percent of youth in England having seen a vaping advertisement. Furthermore, nearly 40 percent of youth across all three countries reported that the advertisements made vaping look appealing.
Vapes are just as addictive as cigarettes and not nearly as healthy as they claim to be. The target audience of vapes is by far proven to be youth with teens at the center focus. Vape companies, similar to the cigarette advertisements of the past, prey on their naivete and the peer pressure teens are put under to look and seem cool to their peers.
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