Nowadays, it does not seem odd to the general public that one might whip out an electronic cigarette to smoke. Even on campus, it is not unusual to see students blowing thick clouds or performing various tricks near the different faculties. Labeled “vaping,” the activity has been observed to be a rising trend within teenagers and millennials. Trendy as it is, usage of electronic cigarettes is not an activity solely reserved for young people. Vaping can also be leisure for older generations.
Electronic cigarettes are available on the market in many forms or models. There are three popular types of electronic cigarettes on the market right now. First, the original electronic cigarette, the pen, as the name suggests, comes in the form of a pen. The second type of electronic cigarette, the JUUL device, is presented in the form a flash drive. And finally, the vape, which can come in a variety of forms. May it be a pen, a “Juul” or a “vape,” electronic cigarette companies always find innovative ways to sell their products under different shapes and models.
Usage of electronic cigarettes has become a way for millennials and teenagers to fight against the traditional cigarette. The electronic cigarette does not have all the deadly chemicals that the traditional cigarette does. There is no lead, no tar nor arsenic in an electric cigarette. The cloud exhaled from an electronic cigarette does not contain any carbon monoxide, which is practical, as there is no way a user might bother a nearby individual with the smell. There is also no way that one might develop cancer from second-hand smoking. The liquid in the electronic vapor is a simple flavored liquid that a desired level of nicotine has been added to.
Despite all the good things, electronic cigarettes have a darker side. The fact that companies have added nicotine to their product makes it harmful. Nicotine is a highly addictive chemical, and it can affect brain development. This is inconvenient as the brain fully matures at the age of 25 coupled with the fact that primary users of electronic cigarettes are teenagers. The learning capacity of the teenage brain is greater than the brain of an adult, thus resulting in the teenager to pick up an addiction faster. High doses of nicotine make an individual prone to high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases. Ultimately, vaping can subconsciously trigger anxiety and insomnia in a user. Usage of electronic cigarettes can also cause dehydration because the chemicals in the device attract the water that is in the saliva and leaves the body feeling dry. This can lead an individual to experience a phenomenon called a “vapor headache.”
Ultimately presented as being the safest possible alternative to cigarettes through the cutbacks of the various toxic chemicals, electronic cigarettes remain a hazard for the youth. Nicotine is the biggest threat in the use of electronic cigarette from causing anxiety to cardiovascular disease. A growing population of electronic cigarette users predicts a gloomy future for the world. One where nearly all the adults are addicted to nicotine, have higher mortality and consequently affect their learning capacity. With the learning capacity affected, adults might not be able to cope or propose solutions to the challenges of the future
