E-cigarettes: Tobacco industry’s gateway to addiction
The tobacco industry is betting big on e-cigarettes to hook its next generation of customers on nicotine, working hard to mislead people that vaping products, such as e-cigarettes, are harmless. That is just not true.
To start, most e-cigarettes contain nicotine. In fact, a single Juul pod can contain as much nicotine as one pack of cigarettes or 200 puffs.1
It’s unlikely that the teens who are using these products understand how much nicotine they are ingesting.2 Aside from being what makes tobacco products addictive, nicotine itself is harmful – so toxic that it was once used as an insecticide.3 Nicotine is especially dangerous for youth – it can permanently damage the teen brain.4
In addition, e-cigarettes contain toxic chemicals with health risks we are only beginning to understand. For example, chemicals found in e-liquid may impair the heart’s ability to pump blood.5 Diacetyl, a chemical found in many e-juices, is linked to a dangerous respiratory disease known as popcorn lung.6
But the health risks of e-cigarettes are just one part of the story. The tobacco industry’s plan? Get young people hooked on products with enticing flavors and cool tech that mask their real danger. And it’s working – more and more kids who wouldn’t otherwise use a tobacco product are using e-cigarettes7 – it’s the most common tobacco product used among high school students.8
Don’t be fooled – the tobacco industry’s only goal is to get as many people as possible addicted to a deadly product. To learn more visit FlavorsHookKids.org.
