By Vendela Krenkel ‘20 and Christianna Tran ‘20

This year, the use of vapes such as JUULs and e-cigarettes has skyrocketed among minors even more than in the past years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2019 has seen a sharp rise in vaping rates among high schoolers; one in four seniors has used an e-cigarette in the past 30 days. This number has more than doubled compared to 2018.

This rise comes at a time when illnesses thought to be vaping-related have risen to over 1,600 cases nationwide. Many federal health officials believe that the public information campaigns with the job to curb teenage addiction are not being influential enough to these young users. They worry about the normalization of e-cigarette use among high school and college students. Recently there has been a variety of studies coming out about the negative short-term and long-term effects of vaping. For instance, within the last year vaping has been linked to various illnesses, seizures, and even death. In total, 34 people have died due to vaping related incidents.

However, some students who vape are not convinced that it is harmful. “I don’t think casual users like me have any health issues,” said one anonymous junior. “The only [consequences] I’ve seen have been due to vaping with marijuana. I don’t think that flavored vapes that I [have used] cause [negative effects] unless used excessively.”

Another senior said, “I know some people who would smoke two pods in a day and they just wouldn’t care if they were putting themselves in danger. I do believe that the consequences of vaping are very real, but I don’t think a lot of people are particularly educated about it enough to care.”

Experts warn that the oil solvents combined with the nicotine or THC in vapes can be inhaled and cause breathing problems and lung inflammation which could result in death. In addition, many vaping ingredients are not listed on their labels. This is worrisome as these unknown solvents can be harmful, just as the contaminant vitamin E oil was to the New Yorkers who now have severe respiratory issues.

The most commonly used flavors are mint, fruity, and menthol, which appeal more to teens. In response to this, the Trump administration plans to ban most of these vape flavors to deter minor use. Some states such as Michigan have completely banned flavored vapes all together. The JUUL company reacted by vowing to suspend sales of many of its sweet flavored pods to avoid likely restrictions from the Federal Drug Administration (FDA).

Even with JUUL’s action, there is a chance that teens will continue to use flavored juice. Other off-brand suppliers sell pods that can then be used in JUUL products. Therefore, until the FDA cuts back on these generic sellers as it had been doing with JUUL, it may have no effect on keeping minors from vaping.

There also is concern that young people may turn to cigarettes after their favorite pod flavor is no longer available.
Altria, a major tobacco production and marketing corporation, holds over a third of JUUL’s stock. Altria manages well-known cigarette brands such as Marlboro and Virginia Slims, and, according to the New York Times, will benefit from JUUL’s discontinuing of popular pod flavors, both by attracting new cigarette users and by gaining against its competition of e-cigs.