Dr. Bob: I have seen my teenage son’s friends vaping. I am worried about him picking up the habit. What should I be worried about? I think that it is not healthy and should be avoided.
Answer: You are correct that vaping is not healthy. It is addictive, dangerous and to be avoided. Let me explain –
- Vaping refers to electronic cigarettes. A solution composed of nicotine and other chemicals is heated and a vapor is produced. This vapor is then inhaled.
- The heated vapor is inhaled into the lungs. Inhaling an addictive substance (nicotine) and other noxious substances. Our breathing tubes and lungs can be fairly effective filters for the air that we breathe but are not effective filters when the bad chemicals are inhaled directly into the breathing tubes and lungs. Lung health, lung function and long-term lung development are adversely affected.
- One of the dangers of vaping is that heating mechanism. Spontaneous fires have occurred in the devices with ensuing burns to the skin.
- The solution for these vaping devices has led to poisoning in children when they have accidentally ingested it.
- The solution has a variety of chemicals beyond just nicotine. Some of these chemicals are similar to antifreeze and formaldehyde. And the other chemicals are not healthy substances either.
- Nicotine is highly addictive. It affects brain functioning, short-term and long-term. It affects learning, attention, and behavior.
- The vaping devices come in all shapes and sizes, making it easy to hide the device. Some look like computer flash drives, asthma inhalers, or even car key fobs. These differences make detection very difficult, revealing deceptive marketing to teens in my estimation.
- It is obvious that the companies promoting these devices are marketing vaping for a younger audience. The fluid is often flavored to attract teen buyers.
- It is illegal to sell e-cigarettes to under 21-year-olds, but online sources and friends can easily circumvent these restrictions.
- Even second-hand exposure to vaping is not safe. The chemicals are now in the air and can be inhaled by others.
- The ill effects of vaping can go beyond lung problems and neurologic problems mentioned about. Some of the chemicals have cardiac effects.
Now that you know the “evils” of vaping, how do you convince your child to not start or to stop if he is vaping? How do you convince him to avoid being exposed to vaping? These issues require having very open communication with your children. Like discussions about alcohol use, driving safety and even sex, it is critical to start early and have frank discussions. One must be talking about short-term effects of vaping and its long-term effects. Short-term effects might be related to social interactions, school activities (sports, band, clubs and the like), or personal goals. Long-term effects might be a nicotine addiction or chronic lung disease (like emphysema) in adulthood.
He might not trust your objectivity (I didn’t necessarily trust everything my mother said when I was a teen!), so please have these discussions with your doctor. Our job is to sensitively find out about our patients, confidentially talk with them, protect their health (mental and physical) and discuss preventive measures for the future. We recognize that these discussions require trust and are often repeated multiple times. So, parents shouldn’t get discouraged that they will have to have multiple discussions with their children also.
In summary, vaping is not good and to be avoided. It might appear innocuous, but it is not.
Dr. Saul is Professor of Pediatrics (Emeritus) at Prisma Health and his website is www.mychildrenschildren.com. Contact Dr. Bob at askdrbobsaul@gmail.com with more questions.