Essay Sample on Teenage Vape Addiction

Did you know over 2 million middle and high schoolers have hit a vape device in 2021? This comes from the FDA survey showing that most kids around you have this addiction or have given into the peer pressure to try it. Since teens and younger children are more likely to become addicted than adults, the producers of these products seem to be basing their brand on the popularity of teenagers. Teen vaping addiction is a problem rapidly spreading around the world, if tobacco producers stop making fun flavors and make it harder for the underaged to purchase, the percentage of teen addicts will go down tremendously.

Today's numbers in high school and even middle schoolers that have been surveyed to vape regularly are huge compared to the comparable smoking cigarettes back in the day. While vaping products may have the potential to help some adults quit smoking, there is no evidence that it assists teens in any way. Teens become addicted much more quickly than adults, with a higher nicotine content that lasts a much longer time span over a pack of cigarettes. Not to mention how portable and compact the vapes are, they can be taken anywhere and everywhere to be stored out of sight of anyone. “Peer pressure has caused 1 out of 4 kids to start vaping daily”(FDA). Producers of nicotine products are making a profit by attracting millions of kids to their addictive products. Clearly, vaping is not going to pass any time soon.

Another main reason why this has become such a major addiction in teens today is how easily accessible they have become. Society attempted to stop underaged teens from purchasing by raising the legal age to 21 from 18. “Most retail websites have easy-to-bypass age restrictions and generic names that wouldn’t stand out on parents’ credit card statements”(TSET). On top of that teens learn and share which convenience stores do and do not check ID making it easy for anyone and everyone to access. Even with gas stations and stores checking IDs regularly, many teens have a fake for this exact reason or they know a friend who has one that will buy and pass them out to whoever asks. Also, people who are of age will buy and sell to underaged teens as long as they're willing to pay, no one seems to care about the age restriction, society has always found a way around it no matter what it is. People may wonder how so many teens can get away with something illegal for so long going unnoticed. The new and upcoming devices are small or shaped like a normal everyday product making them untraceable to anyone who is not looking for it specifically.

Additionally, when smoking cigarettes, everyone around you can smell what you've done for hours or even days after you have smoked. But with vapes,” There are over 15,000 flavors of vape juice on the market” and most if not all are seemingly to attract young children(TSET). With flavors such as cotton candy, mango, or creme brulee parents or teachers at school will have no idea if children are vaping in their own home or school.” More than 85% of e-cigarette users between the ages of 12 and 17 use flavorings, making them a crucial reason why kids start “(TSET). The companies that produce all these devices of varying flavors have to know what they are doing. It causes young teenagers to become addicted and that leads that child to continuously buy this product for years and years after they start. Making the producers more and more money from harming the lungs and brain function of teens today.

There have been significant results shown from the studies of not fully developed brains who started vaping at a young age. A specific study done at a Minnesota high school shows that the peer pressure caused at school to “ hit the vape” even just once has caused an alarmingly high percentage of students to start their long-term addiction. One of the most popular phrases said by students persuading others to start is saying something along the lines of “it doest harm your lungs as cigarettes do”. Kids have grown up learning everyday how bad cigarettes are for their lungs and know they cause cancer from posters in school or even seeing it in their life from their parents or grandparents that have smoked their whole life. Back then everyone smoked cigarettes because they did not have any long-term effects to show any downsides to it. But today everyone knows how bad they are. Vapes have started that exact same way. Kids and probably even adults who have picked up this hobby have completely convinced themselves that it is not bad for them at all. Since it has only come out recently and there is no way to see the long-term effects yet that is one of the main reasons so many people have started.