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Buckeye Blog - Is Vaping Safer Than Smoking?

Date: 09/09/19

When I was in high school, students would smoke behind the football stadium during lunch period. Getting caught could lead to detention, or even get you suspended from school. After years of steadily declining tobacco usage rates, we are now seeing a surge in teenage “vaping” (smoking e-cigarettes). High school seniors had a sharp one-year increase, with more than 37% reporting vaping within the past 12 months—a jump from nearly 28% in 2017, according to the 2018 Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey.

Today, tobacco remains the leading cause of preventable death in Ohio.

A myth among youth is that that vaping is harmless and that the water vapor they inhale only contains “flavoring.” This couldn’t be further from the truth. Here’s a frightening statistic for you: The amount of nicotine in one type of e-cigarette cartridge is roughly equal to the amount of nicotine in an entire pack of cigarettes, or about 200 puffs. WOW.

Vaping is so prevalent that it has been declared an epidemic among youth. So what makes vaping so appealing?

  • Fun flavors such as fruit, mango, mint, and chocolate
  • Devices that come in cool shapes and colors and resemble USB flash drives or pens – this makes them easy to disguise from parents and teachers
  • Little to no odor
  • The common belief that vaping is harmless

We all know that smoking cigarettes is dangerous and is linked to cancer—but vaping e-cigarettes is dangerous too. E-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is highly addictive, and can harm a youth’s developing brain and lungs. In addition, when someone vapes, nicotine and other noxious chemicals are dispersed into the air which exposes the people around them to the same substances. It’s also been shown that addiction to nicotine through vaping is leading youth to “move up” to stronger nicotine sources such as cigarettes (see infographic below). So in fact, vaping is a way to introduce youth to cigarette use.

If you have middle or high school age children, I encourage you to check out this great resource for parents (PDF). It includes questions and comments you might get from your teen about e-cigarettes and some ideas about how you can answer them.

Buckeye Health Plan can help with information and resources that can help you prevent or address nicotine addiction. Just call Member Services at 866-246-4358.

 Ron Suprenant, MD, is a Buckeye Health Plan medical director and addiction specialist.