Vaping devices, also called e-cigarettes have become like a raging fire among our society, especially in our younger generation, doing so with all the uncertainties and controversial issues about its harmful effects on the human health. E-cigarettes were supposedly helping smokers kick nicotine. Instead, they have hooked and killed young people.

Vaping is very popular and widespread among young people nowadays. Vaping has become a staple of today’s culture. From young teens getting into “mods” and adults transitioning into e-cigarettes in an attempt to lead a healthier lifestyle. Most people would like to believe that this “Vaping” trend is sign that cigarettes are about to become outdated, and that people are switching to a more healthy lifestyle. Today, the vaping trend is viewed as a safe alternative to cigarettes, but in reality it may be just as bad, if not worse. What’s really concerning is that many of the e-cigarette and vaporizer companies are flourishing because of the lack of regulation on these relatively new products. Did you know that everyday about 2,500 kids and teens will try their first cigarette? About 16% of those 2,500 will become daily smokers.

Teen smoking in a huge problem in today’s society. Kids and teens could start smoking as soon as middle school. Why teens start smoking, when they usually start, the health problems that come along with it, and how to quit smoking. Teens typically start smoking between middle and high school. Approximately 90% of adult smokers said that they had started before the age of 19. The common e-cigarette has a mouthpiece, a puff/power button, a tank which contains the liquid, a heater, a lithium-ion battery, and a LED light that lights when the smoker draws on the mouthpiece (Baldisseri). When the device is used, the battery heats up the heating component, which then turns the contents of the e-liquid into an aerosol that is inhaled into the lungs and then exhaled. Currently, there are about eight thousand e-liquids flavors, many of which have very appealing names such as Bubble Gum, Chocolate, Cotton Candy, Grape, and Gummy Bear.

Teens are often tempted by the wide variety of e-liquid flavors. The fruity and candy e-liquid flavors play a significant role in getting youth to try them (Mooney 13). Because of this in 2014, e-cigarettes surpassed cigarettes as the most commonly used tobacco product by middle school and high schools students (EBSCO). Even though some e-cigarettes look like regular cigarettes, cigars, or pipes the most appealing thing for the youth is the ones that look like pens, USB flash drives and everyday items which make them difficult to spot on school campuses. E-cigarettes not only come in various shapes but are known by different names.

They are sometimes called “e-cigs,” e-hookahs,” “mods,” “vape pens,” “vapes,” “tank systems,” and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS)” (CDC). With all the fancy and enticing names for the e-liquids and the various forms of the e-cigarette no wonder the youth and young adults are attracted to this new way of smoking without any regards to health issues. So what are the health concerns using e-cigarettes. Because vaping is relatively new, scientist are just beginning to research its effects on the human body. he problem is vaping people make it sound like it helps quit smoking but it is worse than smoking it has twice the nicotine and everything. Nicotine is also a toxic substance. It raises your blood pressure and spikes your adrenaline, which increases your heart rate and the likelihood of having a heart attack ( Hopkins). This means that vaping is still very bad for you and does not make a difference in health or quitting when it comes to either vaping or smoking. “Although it’s generally agreed that these products are less harmful than smoked cigarettes, there is no evidence that they are, in fact, safe. Rather, a growing body of research indicates that they may lead to negative health consequences, including Damage to the brain, heart and lungs, Cancerous tumor development and much others” (Richter).

HARMFUL EFFECTS OF VAPING In the past few years, it has become very popular among teenagers and young adults to use vaping instead of usual cigarettes. It is believed that electronic cigarettes help to give up smoking. Some people are even sure that electronic cigarettes are less harmful than usual ones. This opinion is extremely widespread, although it is not completely right. The types of cancers that smoking can lead to are lung, mouth, esophagus, kidney, stomach, and throat cancer. The more that a person smokes, the higher at risk they are of conceiving these types of cancer; mainly lung cancer. Approximately 90% of people who are diagnosed with lung cancer are caused by smoking. If no one smoked, lung cancer would be a very rare illness. However, for someone who may have quit smoking, it will take approximately 15 years for their lungs to become the same as non-smokers. Let us have a closer look at the disadvantages of vaping.

• POISONOUS ELEMENTS The so-called “vape-juice” can contain nicotine or be nicotine-free, but it remains a toxic fluid. Most of the vape juices contain potentially harmful chemicals, for example, diacetyl. Inhaling diacetyl is not safe and can lead to a range of respiratory diseases.

• ADDICTION: Some people believe that electronic cigarettes can be useful for those who want to give up smoking. This opinion is proved to be true if the smoker chooses nicotine-free vape juices and disuses usual cigarettes. But for those who never smoked vaping can, on the contrary, be addictive.

• PRACTICAL GLITCHES AND EFFECT ON THE PEOPLE: Vaping can be dangerous not only because of the chemicals but also due to imperfect technical construction. The defect of the battery in the electronic cigarette device can lead to an explosion or fire. This can be dangerous for both smokers and the people around them.

• UNIDENTIFIED EFFECTS: Vaping is not examined in detail, as it is much “younger” than usual cigarettes. Electronic cigarettes were invented and became popular not a long time ago, that is why many short- and long-term effects of it may be unknown to modern scientists. Some researches show that vaping is fairly harmful to health, some state that it is less dangerous than usual cigarettes. Although the circumstances of using electronic cigarettes are not clear, many people continue vaping. This can be compared to voluntarily doing something unknown and potentially dangerous for one’s health but believing it has no harmful effect. According to everything I have learned about vaping.

It is twice as bad as smoking a traditional cigarette and it cause a lot of life threatening side effects and diseases. Smoking affects us and the world because it is one of the leading causes of death. Inhaling the toxins destroys our bodies, and there are more and more people every year who die from these toxins. To conclude, vaping is a new way of smoking that we do not know much about. Most of the researches proves it to be dangerous for the health of young people. It may be true that using electronic cigarettes can be a good way to give up smoking. However, I believe that our health should avoid smoking any type of cigarettes, including vaping, as it is proved to be harmful.

Published in The Daily National Courier, October, 21 2022

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