When the first e-cigarette was released most people thought it was an alternative to smoking to overcome a nasty habit. But in reality, it is a serious public health threat. The e-cigarette itself is a device where you inhale aerosol filled with chemicals and nicotine.
Nicotine can be very harmful to a young person because the brain continues to develop until the age of 25. The harmful addictive drug negatively affects the parts of the brain that controls learning, attention, and mood. Nicotine can also lead to future addiction to drugs.
Security guard member and assistant basketball coach Derek Brooks from Northview High School has his concerns about vaping.
“There have been cases where they’ve exploded in peoples faces and completely mess up their face, their teeth, and it causes a bunch of problems in the respiratory part of the body too,” Brooks said.
A recent study from the CDC found is that 99% of e-cigarettes sold in the US contain nicotine. Nicotine is present in the aerosol vapes emit.
The aerosol gas in vapes contains harmful substances such as nicotine and ultrafine particles. These ultrafine particles are inhaled into the lungs with the flavoring called diacetyl which causes serious lung disease.
The reason why teens find vaping so appealing is because of the assortment of flavors in which e-cigarettes are offered. 43% of teens who used e-cigarettes tried them because of the appealing flavors. Flavors are just one of many reasons why vaping becomes addictive to teens.
Another reason amongst young people is peer pressure. Many teens deal with this peer pressure from friends or peers from school. This can lead to low self esteem and poor habits.
“It’s almost like you see a first source doing it and you become the second source. And now you’re hooked to this because you think it’s okay, that A B and C are doing it”, said Brooks.
The long term effects of vaping are still unknown and still being studied.
