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In a year’s time, 1.3 million more high school students were reported to own and use a vape. Although cigarette use in teens has drastically dropped, many are turning to vapes and e-cigs because they are thought to be a safer alternative. Doctors and specialists are worried that the chemicals found in the vapes can cause problems with brain development and long-term effects on the airway. Most younger users are oblivious to the damages that can be caused; therefore, they are not hesitant to try them, unlike cigarettes.
One way that is hoped to stop the popularity of vapes, is educating younger kids before they are highly exposed to it. Middle schools are wanting to include vape and e-cig prevention into their anti-tobacco campaign so they can explain the damage and problems that can occur from exposure overtime
However, many people question whether or not this will be effective. Teens constantly see anti-vaping ads, hear people talking about them negatively, and are attempted to be coerced away from them, obviously to no avail. So, the question is, will including this type of prevention prevent the problem, or will it just place the idea of vaping into the kids heads? I went around and asked my peers a series of questions, and some of their answers might be shocking to you.
When students were asked if they thought adding vape/e-cig prevention into the school’s anti-tobacco campaign would lower the chance of students trying it, only 25 people said yes, and 155 said no. The question proposed from these results is: if the students, a majority who already vape, think that adding extra prevention will do nothing, does anyone else’s opinion really matter as much? Even though professionals are informing people about the risks and trying to bring awareness, none of that will do any good unless the students change their mindset. As we all know, teenagers are stubborn, and sometimes telling someone not to do something, only makes them want to do it even more. The reality is, the most likely chance of getting the high vape usage to go down, is if students change that mindset themselves. Constantly being lectured about it will only put the idea of vaping into their minds, and will make them become more sneaky.
We all hear the statistics about how much vaping has increased and how many teens vape, but how realistic are they? I asked my peers how many of them have tried vaping, and 141 said yes, while 35 said no. From what I have heard from my friends, it is very hard to find someone in high school who does not own a vape, and even harder to find someone who has never tried it before. However, 117 students said they think vaping is just as dangerous as cigarettes, while 72 said no. This shows that a majority of teenagers know the dangers and risks, but continue to try it anyways. Why?
When I asked why students continue to vape, one said, ‘“Because it’s “cool.”Drugs and alcohol and anything in that category, including sex, have always been looked at as “cool,” so if you do not do or have not tried any of those things, you are looked at as weird; that is just how society is.”’
As teenagers, we all have an unspoken group of standards that we feel we need to live up to, or we will not be accepted by everyone. As my further questions proved, most teenagers do not think educating teens on the danger of vaping will solve anything. So maybe, the solution should be to try to spread a message that being a good kid and not doing harmful things does not make you an outcast. Attacking the problem is not going to solve anything; you will have greater success if you attack the reasoning and origination behind it.
