E-cigarettes and vapes have exploded in popularity in the last decade, especially among youth and young adults — from 2011 to 2015, e-cigarette use among high school students in the US increased by 900 percent.
Biobehavioral scientist Suchitra Krishnan-Sarin explains what you’re actually inhaling when you vape (hint: it’s definitely not water vapour) and explores the disturbing marketing tactics being used to target kids. “Our health, the health of our children and our future generations is far too valuable to let it go up in smoke — or even in aerosol,” she says.
VAPING MAY BE LINKED TO A HEIGHTENED RISK OF SEIZURES
The Food and Drug Administration has been warning that nicotine-induced seizures could be a rare side effect of vaping. In the past 10 years, there have been 35 reports of seizures, sudden and uncontrolled disturbances in the brain, following the use of E-Cigarettes. The cases were reported through the FDA’s adverse event reporting system.
Scott Gottlieb, former director of the FDA said:
“While 35 cases may not seem like much compared to the total number of people using e-cigarettes, we are nonetheless concerned by these reported cases, we also recognize that not all of the cases may be reported.”
THE MICROSCOPIC PARTICLES PRODUCED BY E-CIGARETTES LINKED TO HEART ATTACKS, HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE, AND CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE
Even when the vapour produced is free from nicotine, it may still carry other significant heart health risks. The heating element in e-cigarettes emits tiny particles, sometimes including metals such as lead and chromium, which can embed themselves deep into the lungs and get absorbed into the body’s circulatory system.
Recent studies have shown that puffing on e-cigarettes increases concentration of these microscopic pollutants — in particular, PM2.5 and ultrafine particles — in indoor environments.
Read more: VOX – Vaping may be more dangerous than we realized
TARGETING YOUTH
The biggest probel with E-Cigarettes is the blatant targeting towards teenager of these products. They are glamorised and designed to attract the younger generations. With flashing lights, Bluetooth connectivity and various technical ‘mods’, these devices appeal to teenage geeks and the fashion conscious. From Vaping competitions to the endless amounts of different gimmicky juice’s – no teen is left out.
And yet, what are the long term health affects, no one seems to be quite sure. We seem to of replaced a smoking epidemic in teenagers with a new epidemic with unknown consequences. Indeed, for all we know the detrimental health affects caused by Vaping maybe far worse than traditional cigarettes. Either way, its a problem that does need more attention.
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