Tobacoo has been used by humans for thousands of years. Studies show that early tobacco use started in 4000 BC. Tobacco contains nicotine an addictive chemical related to caffeine. Nicotine gets you “buzzed” or “Domed” and that is the main reason for smoking (at first at least). But now there is a new form of getting nicotine; vaping. Vaping is a controversial subject in these times. Most agree vaping is healthier than smoking, but there are many other questions surrounding vape, is nicotine alone bad for you, is vaping safe, and should it be allowed for minors.  

Nicotine is addictive and that should be noted. But nicotine is not deadly by itself, as Mike Russel said almost 40 years ago, “people smoke for the nicotine but die from the tar” nicotine has been demonized mostly to stop smoking. In cigarettes, nicotine was made to be more potent. Getting people hooked quickly. That is why nicotine when used in patches, gums, and vapes is not usually enough to get people off of smoking. Drugs such as Chantix have to be used in order to quit entirely. Nicotine has also been found to have some positive effects. It has been used for relieving or preventing a variety of neurological disorders, including Parkinson’s disease, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), Tourette’s and schizophrenia. It might even improve attention and focus enough to qualify as a cognitive enhancer. It has also long been associated with weight loss, with few known safety risks. The key word there is known for a long-time nicotine has not been studied alone. And the long-term effects are not completely known. 

So, nicotine itself is relatively safe, but addictive. But before we talk about vapes safety it is important to know what exactly vape is. All vapor devices work very similarly most use vape juice a mix of vegetable glycerin or vg and Propylene Glycol or pg. as well as nicotine, but most of the juice is actually water. When the juice is heated it becomes water vapor and is inhaled. The devices use coils to heat the juice up and can be activated manually using a button or can be activated simply by inhaling. Currently there are no studies proving that vaping could cause cancer. But the scary thing is that there are no studies that say the that it doesn’t. There has been some progress though all vapor devices and vape juices are now FDA regulated. This means everything is now safe for consumption at least orally, but the effects of them being heated and inhaled has not been studied long term. 

So, should these be allowed for minors? Simply no. The effects are unknown and nicotine is much easier to become addicted too when you are younger.  but legality has never stopped teens before so why would it now, the only reason teens won’t do it is if they don’t want to so if they are educated about the effects of vaping then they can make an informed decision. Maybe if it was talked about in school instead of ignored completely it could help. When I asked a school mate about vaping she said “I think people should just not get in other people’s business. Honestly it’s their decision and I do not believe its unhealthy.” Another anonymous teen said. I quit because I don’t want to be addicted to anything, I haven’t really haven’t done much research, but I feel like there’s just not enough research out there right now. 

Vaping is controversial and will continue to be until research is finished and it can be confirmed that vaping is safe. A new bill has been purposed that would no longer allow 18 year-olds to buy vapor products the age would be raised to 19 instead. This will probably not be passed, as it is very small change. Legality is not the issue here, teens have already shown they do not care about the legality of vaping, maybe if teens learned about its dangers in school then they would stop. Teenagers are more health conscious than ever before, and most do not know any of the dangers associated with vaping. If more teens knew the danger less teens would vape.