Vape clouds are a common occurrence on NC State’s campus. Walking around and detecting an odd whiff of fruit is practically a daily event for most students. Often seen as a safer alternative to cigarettes due to their lack of pesticides and particulates, e-cigarettes have become increasingly popular, growing to exceed the use of traditional tobacco in past years, according to the FDA.
Although, over time some studies have been performed which indicate a lower health risk of e-cigarettes, these have been far from comprehensive, and the FDA has yet to issue a report on its health effects. Largely as a result of this lack of research, San Francisco, earlier this year, banned the sale of e-cigarettes until the FDA issues a complete report.
In the past month, San Francisco has gained a new data point in its favor: A recent spike in lung illness has led to over a dozen hospitalizations across the country. The one common factor in these cases was vape use just before the incident. North Carolina itself reported three such cases, according to the News & Observer.
The primary issue with the wide usage of vape pens is that so little data exists on its long-term impacts. As we’re all well aware in the modern day, in the absence of clear, consistent information on a subject, misinformation spreads like wildfire. Long-term effects tend to require long, in-depth studies to be identified, so until regulatory agencies conduct this research, we simply cannot say what these impacts may be.
This isn’t to say vaping carries no known risks. Nicotine is a highly addictive chemical, and according to Yale Medicine, it can be especially harmful for adolescents as brains don’t reach maturity until age 25. Some evidence indicates it can interfere with concentration, a serious problem for those who are still in school, especially since e-cigarettes can contain much higher concentrations of nicotine.
Vaping can also be very detrimental to students’ financial health. The high prices of nicotine products, combined with their addictive properties, make them a fantastic money-making venture for JUUL and other companies. Compounded with the hazards to developing good attention skills, vaping as a teenager can set back one’s economic development at an early stage.
Nicotine addiction is a widespread issue, and no single policy is capable of eliminating its risks. Mental healthcare is a primary need, as addiction often carries psychological roots. More rigorous prevention of advertisements that appeal to young people can also reduce the drive for them to start using nicotine.
Most importantly, the FDA should staunchly regulate both the concentration of nicotine in vape pods and the ease of their distribution until more research is conducted. More funding, at both a national and state level, should be directed toward this research given the scale of the situation. Finally, just as ad campaigns against traditional tobacco have helped lead to its slow decline in usage over time, ad campaigns explaining the uncertainty and potential hazards of e-cigarettes should be employed to fight misinformation by vaping companies.
Students can be a part of the solution by pushing for regulation like that in San Francisco or other less stringent varieties. They can also push back when they hear friends say vaping is safer, since addiction in any form is mentally unhealthy, and there are far too many unknowns about these devices to place too much confidence in their safety.
