There can be many consequences of vaping in adolescents and it can affect their learning ability, self-esteem, or mood due to the nicotine consumption.
The electronic cigarette or ‘vaper’ has gained a lot of popularity among young people as a supposedly less harmful alternative to conventional cigarettes.
However, it has been clinically proven that regularly using these electronic cigarettes is harmful to health and, because of this, some countries have banned their sale and use.
Understanding electronic cigarettes and vaping
In this post, we will address the current situation regarding electronic cigarettes and vaping, including how they work, a comparison with other similar substances, and how they can affect people’s health.
First of all, let’s understand exactly what an electronic cigarette is and how it works.
What are electronic cigarettes?
These cigarettes are electronic devices that work using batteries. They heat the liquid inside the device to produce the vapor that the consumer inhales.
Cigarettes can be filled with a liquid that generally contains nicotine. Additionally, certain essences can be added to modify their flavor and smell.
In fact, this is one of the great attractions of vaping. Many young people find it much more appealing than conventional cigarettes because the flavors can be tailored to each person’s taste.
Moreover, the smell it causes in public isn’t usually as strong and doesn’t tend to annoy people as much.
How does vaping work?
Vaping devices heat liquids with the electrical energy from the vape’s battery. When heated, the liquid produces a vapor that is inhaled through the consumer’s mouth.
However, this vapor, which may seem similar to water vapor and appear harmless, usually has a high nicotine content along with other chemicals that add the different flavors to the liquid.
Just like a cigarette, the vapor reaches the lungs, causing nicotine and the other components to quickly enter the bloodstream.
Although the emitted air may only have a mild smell, this doesn’t mean the vapor isn’t harmful to passive smokers either.
Are vape pens safe?
Vape pens are NOT safe for children, teenagers, young adults, or the elderly. E-cigarettes contain nicotine, a substance that is highly harmful to people’s health.
Vaping should be avoided at all ages, and it has also been shown that continuous use can affect learning and the development of certain skills in young people.
Is it better to vape than to smoke cigarettes or marijuana?
From an objective point of view, vaping cannot be considered a healthy or safe alternative to conventional cigarettes.
Although the amount of nicotine inhaled each time one inhales from a vaporizer may be less than that of a cigarette, vape pen use is much more intensive, and they are often inhaled much more in any given day.
Due to its milder flavor, people develop an addiction to more frequent vaping, which can end up being even worse than conventional cigarettes.
If we compare it with marijuana, the main difference is that the vaporizer, when filled with its nicotine-based liquid, doesn’t provide any kind of ‘high’ or a sensation of total relaxation as marijuana does.
Some people vape marijuana mixed with liquids that contain cannabis, and this is not at all recommended from a health point of view because it can cause anxiety attacks, paranoia, and other consequences for mental health.
Are there any healthy vape pens?
In recent years, vape pens that use liquids without any nicotine have started to be marketed.
However, even though they don’t contain nicotine, these vapes haven’t yet been properly researched, nor have they been approved by any worldwide health organizations.
The nicotine is often replaced by hormones, oils, or other substances that are also harmful to health.
Because of this, there is currently no type of healthy vaping. The only healthy option is not to smoke in any shape or form, whether that be cigarettes, vape pens, or anything other means.
The popularity of vaping among adolescents
Despite it being proven that vaping is harmful to health, vaping has grown enormously in popularity in recent years.
Why is vaping so popular among teenagers?
Vaping is very popular among teenagers because the vapor inhaled from the electronic cigarette doesn’t have a strong taste or smell.
Because of this, the substance may be much easier to assimilate, as it doesn’t have the strong taste that cigarettes, tobacco, or marijuana do.
Additionally, a teenager can vape without their parents realizing, because the smell doesn’t linger.
So, unsuspecting parents don’t realize how harmful vaping devices can be, don’t know how they work, and sometimes don’t even realize they exist.
Vaping is becoming increasingly popular among preteens and teenagers
Vaping devices, from a marketing perspective, were presented to society as a safer and weaker alternative to cigarettes.
For this reason, they have become very popular among teenagers, due to this false premise.
Preteens and teenagers are naturally very curious, and are always wanting to experience new things in life, and, unfortunately, vapes have become accessible and a viable option, despite their dangers.
It is important to tell your children about the dangers and consequences of using vape pens or electronic cigarettes so that, once they become teenagers, they aren’t tempted to use them.
Health risks and concerns
Vaping has become a matter of concern due to all the risks and negative consequences it can cause among young people.
Vaping isn’t advisable at any age, but it’s particularly important to raise awareness among young people so that they can avoid getting into the habit and continuing into adulthood.
Encouraging healthy habits is essential for a young person’s holistic development. For example, taking part in an enjoyable sport can reduce anxiety and help to ensure that they don’t seek harmful ways of coping with it, such as vaping.
An effective way to spark an interest in sports is to make it fun. A soccer camp or a tennis camp can be excellent options for young people to discover new physical activities in a fun and exciting way.
But there’s no need to limit it to the most popular sports, as any type of sport or exercise, whether it be football, tennis, swimming, dancing, or any other, can be very beneficial for young people.
The important thing is to find activities that develop interest and enthusiasm, and that help them to channel their energy and curiosity healthily.
What are the health risks of vaping for preadolescents and adolescents?
- It hinders optimal brain development
The most serious consequence of vaping in adolescents is that the consumption of nicotine or THC can cause their brains to not develop fully, which limits their learning capacity.
Consuming substances like nicotine can seriously affect brain development in young people. For this reason and others, doctors strongly prohibit its use in preadolescents and adolescents.
Apart from it affecting academic performance, it can also affect you throughout your whole life, depending on how much you used it.
In the long term, it can cause serious problems in knowledge retention and affect memory, as well as leading to many other complications.
- A tendency to acquire other addictions
It is often said that one addiction opens the door to many others. And this is exactly what happens with vape pens.
In a world full of so many types of psychotropic and harmful substances, allowing vaping from such a young age can become a mere prelude to falling into a much worse addiction in the future.
The feeling of stress, anxiety, or panic that vaping can cause often drives people to try to alleviate it with other drugs, entering a vicious cycle of addictions that becomes increasingly difficult to escape from.
In short, one must be strict and firm in banning vaping among adolescents. Its consumption could make people more curious about other types of substances and, by the time a person realizes, it can often already be too late.
- Stress, anxiety, or sleep problems
Vapes contain addictive substances that can cause stress, anxiety, panic attacks, or sleep problems when we stop using them.
Adults can normally cope with these problems a little better than teens, although this doesn’t mean they should use them. However, for an inexperienced teenager, it can lead to significant mental problems.
Having such a strong addiction at such an early stage of life can lead to considerable emotional imbalance.
- Throat irritation, vocal cord damage, and other illnesses
Physical problems that vaping can cause include constant coughing, throat irritation, and changes in voice tone due to damage to the vocal cords and the digestive tract.
These diseases, if not treated in time, can cause lung damage and breathing problems.
Nicotine is also related to the onset of EVALI. We will talk more about this disease later.
The prolonged use of vapes can cause numerous health problems, as it affects the lungs.
Why should parents be concerned?
Parents should be very concerned if their child is vaping, as it can be the gateway to many other addictions.
Unfortunately, society has somewhat accepted vaping for public consumption and even in enclosed spaces, something that is already completely prohibited in the case of cigarettes.
In light of the prohibition on selling cigarettes to minors and the illegality of marijuana in many countries around the world, adolescents turn to vaping as a more ‘affordable’ vice.
In addition, its marketing is quite effective, and sells it as a healthy option or hobby, something that is very far from reality; consumers are being directly lied to in this respect.
That’s why all parents should be concerned about the popularity that vaping is gaining in recent times. In Spain, for example, vapers are already more popular than tobacco.
According to a study by the WHO, 35% of adolescents aged 15 years in Spain have already tried vaping, while the percentage that has consumed tobacco or cigarettes is much lower.
What is EVALI?
EVALI (E-cigarette or Vaping Use Associated Lung Injury) is the acronym being used to refer to a lung disease caused by the use of e-cigarettes.
The disease has been classified by experts as potentially fatal, as it can damage lung functionality to the point of causing death.
Its symptoms, such as coughing, shortness of breath, and sore throats, can begin days or weeks after starting to use electronic cigarettes.
The causes of this disease are related to the consumption of vitamin E oil, which can impair lung function, in addition to the exposure to other metals and nicotine.
Parent orientation and awareness
In this section, we are going to answer several frequently asked questions that parents interested in correcting or preventing their children from vaping may have.
We hope that these recommendations can help and be the first step in solving this problem.
How can parents suspect that their child is vaping?
- By its smell. Despite having a mild smell, vaping often leaves a trace on the clothes of those who use it, or spend time with other people who vape. Having said that, the smell isn’t as recognizable as tobacco or marijuana. However, if your child starts coming home with ‘mild’ smells you hadn’t noticed before, you might want to ask if any of their friends have been using an electronic cigarette. If the smell becomes persistent and constant, then it’s time to address the situation more directly in order to get some answers.
- By their symptoms. If your child suddenly shows signs of coughing, fever, throat irritation, or difficulty breathing, they may be smoking an electronic cigarette. If the cough is persistent and dry, combined with throat problems, it’s best to consult a doctor to get their recommendations. The doctor should be able to notice if they have been smoking any type of substance, and if that is what has caused their illness. The symptoms of vaping or EVALI are quite evident and difficult to hide. We recommend that you see a doctor as soon as possible to ensure the condition doesn’t worsen. In addition, vaping can also lead to the appearance of dark circles around the eyes, mouth sores, and occasional nosebleeds.
- Mood is another giveaway sign. Teenagers who get addicted at an early age often experience sudden mood swings. If your child has always been active, positive, and talkative, then it wouldn’t be normal for them to suddenly have mood swings or their personality to change. Such radical changes are often a sign of an addiction.
Is it okay and healthy to inhale a vape once?
No. Drugs and harmful substances are not healthy, not even once. In fact, many people try vaping, marijuana, or other similar substances to satisfy their curiosity and end up becoming addicted.
Although a single inhalation won’t cause you any harm, it can develop a taste for it that could end up as an uncontrollable addiction.
Because of this, the best advice is to avoid its consumption at all costs. Some things in life are just not worth trying.
Can the lungs heal after vaping?
Giving up vaping will always bring positive consequences for a person’s health.
Studies show that the body takes approximately four days to expel all the nicotine that had accumulated in the bloodstream and the lungs.
If the person hasn’t been vaping for too long, they are usually able to continue with a normal life, without any health complications.
However, you must be careful about withdrawal symptoms. Doctors strongly advise those who quit vaping to drink plenty of water to improve their breathing and to combat the anxiety that will occur after quitting.
Depending on how long the person has been vaping, the lungs can take anywhere from 1 to 9 months to regain their optimal capacity.
Of course, we also recommend you that you take part in physical activity and exercise, such as joining a soccer academy or any other sport to improve your overall physical condition.
Does vaping help to quit smoking cigarettes?
Currently, there is no scientific research to show that vapes help people quit smoking conventional cigarettes.
In fact, the FDA in the United States doesn’t consider vape pens to be an effective way of giving up cigarettes.
This is simply another vaper marketing myth. At the end of the day, you could simply be creating another addiction, or swapping from one addiction to another.
An addiction isn’t defeated by substituting it with another substance. It must be faced head-on, healthily, and with professional help.
Prevention of vaping in adolescents through sports
Sport provides many health benefits to teenagers. Experts highly recommend that all young people engage in regular physical activity to help them develop their motor skills, among many other benefits.
In addition to this, sports introduce teenagers to a healthy lifestyle. To take part in sports, even on an amateur level, it’s important to have a good diet and healthy habits in order to improve on-pitch performance.
Why don’t you consider enrolling your child in a summer camp in Spain? It could help them distance themselves from bad habits like vaping or from any group of friends that may have been leading them down that path. They’ll also be able to learn some Spanish, a language that can open many doors for them in the future.
A change of surroundings, albeit a temporary one, can help steer children towards a more positive and healthy lifestyle, and a smart and practical way to do this is through sport.
Conclusion
Vaping can have mild negative effects on teen health, such as coughing, fever, throat irritation, or the appearance of dark circles around the eyes in the first few days.
However, there are also more serious problems linked to the use of electronic cigarettes, such as anxiety, panic attacks, and increased stress levels. Additionally, nicotine consumption can hinder proper brain development.
The most harmful consequence of this harmful practice is EVALI, a potentially fatal disease that affects lung function.
Therefore, the use of vapes and electronic cigarettes must be avoided at all costs in preadolescents and adolescents.
Aspects to consider about vapes:
- They’re harmful because they contain nicotine, oils, and other chemical substances
- There is no ‘safe’ vape device proven by science
- Vaping can be as harmful as, or more harmful than smoking cigarettes
- It’s also possible to vape cannabis, which can have terrible health consequences
- It has a mild smell, which isn’t as strong as tobacco
- It can affect brain development in teenagers
- It can cause the EVALI lung disease
- It doesn’t help you to give up smoking conventional cigarettes