We get it, you vape

Evidence suggests vaping unsafe alternative to cigarettes

Emma Lockhart, Editor-in-Chief|May 24, 2017

Senior Justin Hibbard stands in the shelter of a pole barn while vaping to avoid the blowback of the water vapor from the pen.

Go out and sit in the student parking lot after school, right near the exit and just watch the cars go by. It is almost guaranteed that you will see the big, billowed clouds of water vapor gusting out of a truck, then a van, then a few passenger cars window. Salted caramel, strawberry, and cream all secondhand to those passing by.

The clouds streaming out the window have more of health hazard than realized.

Vaping, often misinterpreted as the safe alternative to smoking cigarettes, is the inhalation of water vapor produced by an electronic cigarette.

Since the product has been released in the past two decades, there have not been any long term studies that prove the effect the vapor may have on the lungs.

Although, there is no secret as to what the vape liquid carries ingredient wise.

In most, it is nicotine. Most e-liquids are labeled with the percentage of the nicotine in the liquid, still having the same addictive effect as cigarettes. According to Quit Smoking Community, an organization which provides information to help individuals quit smoking, vaping creates a lot of the same chemicals in secondhand smoke that cigarettes do, making it just as dangerous to smoke as a cigarette.

Vaping is usually justified for the health and safety concerns, not for the pricy liquids, machines and other materials that help with cleaning the pen.

“The cost to start vaping is pretty high compared to sticking with cigarettes,” senior Justin Hibbard said, “but, in the long run, it’s cheaper and easier. It has never affected my breathing, just the production of that much smoke has caused me to cough quite a bit.”

The cost is not the only worry when it comes to vaping. A condition often called “popcorn lung,” or Bronchiolitis Obliterans, is another fear associated with the activity.

According to The American Lung Association, an association with a mission for Americans to breathe easier, the diagnosis is a scarring of air sacs that leads to the thickening and swelling of airways. This causes wheezing and shortness of breath.

The marketing that goes with vaping seeks out youth in their endeavors. They are long time consumers who are not yet hooked on cigarettes, in most cases. Hook them on a lie and some different flavor combinations, they will have a lifetime customer.

In 2014, 81 percent of youth that used vape pens said that it was appealing to them because of the flavors that were offered, according to the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Laws.

“Look at our culture right now,” senior Larry Cornish said. “It’s just like smoking was in the 50s. All the cool young people were doing it. It’s getting instilled in people’s brains that is the new, cool thing to do.”