Learn the facts about electronic cigarettes and the effects they can have on your health
When vaping became mainstream in the mid-2000s, it was pegged as a safe alternative to cigarettes or an aid for quitting—made indefinitely more popular when millennials and Gen Z started using the (oftentimes) odorless and smoke-free device in high numbers.
But just as cigarette smoking began losing its cool in the latter portion of the 20th century following a Surgeon General’s report, vaping is well on its way to being condemned, too.
On October 8, 2019, following a string of lung injuries and confirmed deaths tied to e-cigarette and vaping use, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a report urging people to avoid use of these products.
Although the absolute reasons for these injuries and deaths is still under investigation, one thing is for certain: Knowledge and research surrounding e-cigarettes and vaping is extremely limited. So, misinformation about vaping has spread along with its popularity.
Here, we highlight seven of the biggest myths associated with the trend.
Myth: Vaping is essentially the same thing as cigarette smoking.
Facts: When vaping, users inhale the steam from heated oil rather than the fumes from burning leaves. The oil contains nicotine, the addictive compound found in tobacco, which is meant to satisfy smokers’ cravings without the exposure to the by-products of burning. Vape oil often contains flavorings, such as fruit or mint, that make the steam more appealing to those who don’t like the taste of tobacco.
Some e-cigarettes are designed to look like standard cigarettes or cigars, while many models resemble thin pens, small rectangular computer flash drives, or other electronic devices. You may hear them referred to as “vape pens,” “mods,” “vape tanks,” “vaporizers,” or “Juuls” (the most widely-known brand). Most rely on a rechargeable battery to power the heating coil that turns liquid oil into steam.
Myth: Only adults are using use e-cigarettes to reduce or break their smoking habit.
Facts: While it is true that only 1.3 percent of e-cigarette users age 45 or over have never been cigarette smokers, that number climbs to 40 percent among e-cigarette users aged 18 to 24 years, according to a 2018 study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The CDC also found that 20 percent of high school students and five percent of middle-schoolers had vaped in the past 30 days.
Myth: Vaping isn’t addictive.
Facts: Vaping is highly addictive. Whether you smoke tobacco or inhale steam, nicotine enters your bloodstream and reaches your brain faster than drugs injected into your veins. Nicotine stimulates your body to release epinephrine (also known as adrenaline) and dopamine, the hormone that helps you relax and feel happy. But the pleasant feeling wears off quickly, especially as your body builds up a tolerance for nicotine. That causes you to crave more. Vaping can be as addictive as smoking, and because it can be more convenient than smoking, many people are puffing the nicotine-infused steam steadily throughout their day.
Myth: Vaping can help you quit smoking.
Facts: Most adults who use e-cigarettes also continue to smoke cigarettes, according to the CDC research. Moreover, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a group of experts that makes health care recommendations to government agencies, reviewed the available data touting e-cigarette and vaping use as a viable way to quit cigarettes and concluded that “the evidence is insufficient to recommend e-cigarettes for smoking cessation in adults.”
Myth: When you vape, you don’t inhale toxic chemicals like those found in cigarettes.
Facts: Vape oil, or aerosol, contains nicotine, a powerful substance that can be lethal in large doses. Even in moderate doses, nicotine is harmful to your health, with negative effects on your body’s cardiovascular, respiratory, renal, and reproductive systems. It is especially damaging for pregnant women and their developing fetuses, as well as children and adolescents. Several studies have found that nicotine ingested in any form increases your risk of contracting cancer. Some e-cigarette aerosols also have been found to contain heavy metals like lead and other cancer-causing agents.
Myth: Government agencies make sure that e-cigarettes are safe.
Facts: Vaping products and their ingredients are not tested or evaluated by any public health agency. Since vaping has become popular only in the last few years, the long-term health impacts have not yet been studied.
What’s more, many U.S. health officials believe that a black market-type of product called “Dank Vape” (which contains THC, an illegal substance that comes from marijuana plants) could be responsible for some of the lung injuries that have occurred.
Myth: Vaping is cooler than smoking.
Facts: Movie stars and other cultural icons once made smoking seem glamorous, but when the damage it caused became widely known, its popularity declined. Vaping may be trendy, but it still can lead to nicotine addiction and other serious health problems—even death.