E-cigarette flavors available for tasting at Vapor Haven, one of hundreds of vapor shops in Oklahoma. Popular flavors for teenagers include ‘Sweet Tart’ and ‘Unicorn Puke’, which one student described as “every flavor Skittle compressed into one.”
E-Cigarette use has risen sharply over the past few years, as reported by the New York Times. E-cigarette use has tripled among middle and high school students from 2013 to 2014. According to federal data released today, 13% of high school students smoke e-cigarettes.
As our T&T blog has reported on in the past, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) entered into the waters of regulating e-cigarettes a year ago, but the process has been slow. Unfortunately, the increased rate of use of e-cigarettes among students has moved much quicker than the FDA has been able to act.
Although in the past many teenagers had not been exposed to e-cigarettes, now some teenagers liken the presence of e-cigarettes to that of laptops – they’re ubiquitous. E-cigarette companies are continuing to recklessly market their products to children with kid-friendly flavors. Teens love the kid-friendly e-cigarette flavors that taste like candy.
Some teen boys realize that teen girls think traditional cigarettes are gross, so they are steering clear of traditional cigarettes. Unfortunately, they don’t realize that e-cigarettes have negative health implications too. Children and teens, and frankly everyone, should realize that e-cigarettes are not a healthy substitute for traditional cigarettes. E-cigarettes can still lead to health problems, especially in children and teens.
