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Vaping Vanessa LaMonaca Vapes are devices used to inhale liquified nicotine in a discrete way with no smoke taste or smell associated with their use. Vaping is an incredibly common word and practice among adolescents, particularly high schoolers (Martinelli, 2022). The devices weren’t originally meant for high school adolescents to get a hold of, as they were created as a “healthier” alternative to smoking and a tool for adults to use to try and kick the habit (Leone, 2018). However, vapes are now being marketed towards youth with their alluring and wide selection of flavours, from mint to fruity pebbles cereal. Youth are justifying the practice due to the alleged perks to vaping – it’s “better” than smoking cigarettes, the pods look sleek and technologically appealing, they can be used secretly indoors, there is no bad taste or smell (the opposite due to infused flavours), it’s easy to charge with any USB port, and there is little to no FDA regulation making them easy to acquire (Leone, 2018; Less et al., 2021; Thomas, 2020). Due to these justifications, vaping has become a widespread and normalized practice among adolescents, making it a part of the modern teenage experience (Thomas, 2020). The devices have become a status symbol among teenagers. Their use is now a social activity, and when teens want to appear cool to their friends they will partake in vaping around them. Less et al., (2021) reported that the perceived normalization of vaping is the main reason youth take up the activity, stating that many teenagers want to be seen as cool and popular by their peers. More alarmingly however, adolescents tend to ignore or not acknowledge the associated risks of vaping (Martinelli, 2022). Due to the lack of smoke odour and various flavours, teenagers don’t associate the harms of nicotine or cigarettes with vapes, despite one vape cartridge having roughly the same amount of nicotine as a pack of cigarettes (Leone, 2018). Vaping is associated with an increased heart rate, inflamed lungs, and altered brain development.
