E-cigarettes have become an epidemic among teens over the last few years. The main problem with these vaping devices is that not much research was done on the effect they have on people of all ages. With the emergence of brands like JUUL, the exploitation of adolescents occurred through marketing their products mainly to underage patrons.
Getting teens to stop vaping has been rather difficult because of the clandestine nature of the JUUL which looks like a USB drive that a teen uses at school and because of the vapor that does not linger in the air or in odor. Teens have admitted to vaping in school and have continuously found ways to purchase their contraband underage.
Although there are decades of research on the negative effects of nicotine, e-cigarettes were still unleashed onto the marketplace as a new tobacco-less method to quit smoking conventional cigarettes. Tobacco was seen as the most addictive substance in cigarettes and nicotine salts was the way to get away from tobacco. Turns out nicotine salts are more harmful and addictive than they were advertised to be, and e-juice pods have as much nicotine as one pack of cigarettes.
Unfortunately, by the time this information came to the forefront, teenagers were already hooked on nicotine from vaping and the statistics of addiction continued to increase. The appeal to underage vapers through marketing tactics caused teens to gravitate to the unique gadgets without any knowledge on what the product would do to them mentally and physically.
What pediatricians are seeing with their adolescent patients is what is deemed as nicotine toxicity. Symptoms being reported are stomach aches and headaches that they believe have something to do with how fast the nicotine salts are absorbed into the body. Nicotine peaks into the bloodstream of teens and into their brains with a stronger potency than regular cigarettes making them having anxiety and lowered focus.
Normally nicotine has a bitter taste, but nicotine salts mask the unpleasant flavor along with sweet flavors that attract teens instead of appearing unhealthy or harmful. The flavor is also a big concern because a teenager will vape e-juice that emits an appealing flavor which causes them to puff on their vape more frequently because it tastes and smells almost exactly like candy. A teen could go through a single pod with excessive nicotine in one day which has caused psychiatric symptoms not experienced with traditional cigarettes.
Overall e-cigarettes are being monitored now with the epidemic rising among teens and more research is being presented to the FDA for regulation. There is more work to do, but now that there is more awareness of vape use treatment programs, teens are getting the word that e-cigarettes are not any safer than cigarettes like they were once thought to be.
If you or an adolescent you know needs to get help for drug or alcohol abuse, Stonewater Adolescent Recovery Center can give you the guidance that you deserve. Establishing a strong network of family and community can reinforce practices for living substance free.
Call us today to start living in your recovery: 662-598-4214