5 things you probably didn’t know about vaping
A Good Alternative?
Electronic or e-cigarettes – you may know them as vapes or ‘vape pens’ – are often touted as a safer, healthier alternative to smoking cigarettes. And while it’s easy to see that this is probably true – cigarettes contain dozens of carcinogens and are linked to many diseases – it’s tempting to forget that the ‘lesser’ of two evils can also be, well, evil.
Vapes typically consist of a battery, an atomiser and a reservoir for e-liquid, or vape juice. The liquid is drawn to the atomiser through a wicking material, where it’s heated by a small element and aerosolised. A crucial difference between this method and regular tobacco cigarettes is that here, the liquid isn’t burnt, so you aren’t inhaling smoke.
Wait A Minute
However, a crucial similarity is that vapes, like cigarettes, typically contain their own concoction of potentially hazardous ingredients, including nicotine, which is highly addictive. This is concerning because vaping has become quite popular among adolescents. And while your first cigarette will taste terrible, vapes taste like fruit and candy, which makes beginning the habit much easier and seemingly ‘fun’.
Nicotine is particularly harmful for developing brains because it impairs their development, slows down cell growth, and can even cause multiple mood disorders and cognitive impairment. It also inhibits impulse control, which can pave the way for more dangerous experimentation.
“Vaping probably isn’t as bad as smoking, but not vaping is still a better choice for your health”
The addictive nature of nicotine also means many people who vape to cut down on cigarettes, simply end up vaping as much as they used to smoke, and the relative social acceptability of vaping has health professionals worried about the worldwide increase in nicotine intake.
Best Beware
As for the other health effects, studies so far seem to indicate that vaping is less dangerous than smoking, ‘so far’ being a key phrase. Respiratory issues, elevated blood pressure, irritation and a cough aren’t uncommon, but vaping hasn’t been conclusively linked to even a fraction of the health concerns smoking has.
Ingredients are usually food safe, but as the technology is only about 20 years old, the long-term effects of inhaling these chemicals remains unclear. People have died of vaping, but almost all were smoking either home-made blends, liquid containing THC and acetate, or juice from dodgy sources.
Exploding vape pens have also given people some very nasty burns, but these are the exception, not the norm. Tangential to the vaping itself, most e-liquids – those containing nicotine in particular – are very toxic if consumed, and also absorb quickly through the skin and mucous membranes.
A small bottle of vape juice, if ingested, can be enough to kill a toddler, a fact made even more worrying because most of these liquids smell delicious. As you’d expect, they aren’t pet safe either.
The Bottom Line
In the end, it’ll probably never be healthy for you to inhale an uncertain blend of chemicals of uncertain levels of safety, even if it isn’t arriving boiling hot, as with cigarettes. Is vaping as bad as smoking? We don’t know for sure yet, but time will tell.
Text by: Rhynhardt Krynauw
Images: Shutterstock Pexels
Latest Jet club magazine
We’ve got the latest trends, exciting prizes and exclusive savings just for you!
Jet Club will not pass your details to anyone else. By clicking the subscribe button you confirm you have read and agree to the Jet Club Terms and conditions and Jet Club Privacy Statement.
Subscribe
*Underwritten by Guardrisk Life Limited, an authorised financial services provider and an insurer licensed to conduct life insurance business in terms of the Insurance Act 18 of 2017. Foschini Retail Group (Pty) Ltd is an authorised financial services provider. Ts, Cs, exclusions, limitations Apply- ask in store or see www.mytfginsure.co.za