A recent study showed various interesting relationships in between the smoking habits of teens and youth. To be specific, the health study demonstrated a striking correlation in between teens who vape and smoke. It was shown that teens who smoke are more likely to be cigarette smokers in future.
Additionally, the study showed various other striking relationships. It demonstrated that teens who use electronic cigarettes otherwise referred to as `vaping` in the 12th grade were more likely to be smokers. In fact, the study showed that these teens were four times more likely to be smokers within a period of one year. This in stark contrast to those who don’t vape in the 12th year.
The conclusions of this study have contributed to the increasing evidence that shows the striking side effects of vaping. The publication was made in the Tobacco Journal. To be specific, it showed that vaping increases the likelihood of cigarette smoking among youth
Using vaping exposes the teens to various substances, which increases the probability of future cigarette use. This includes compounds that contain nicotine, flavors such as bubble gum as well. These compounds play a major role in desensitizing teens on the long-term effects of cigarette smoking.
E-cigarettes are often classified as a safer alternative to tobacco products since the smoke produced contains fewer toxic chemicals. This in comparison to the conventional cigarette smoke. That said, researchers are still evaluating the health side effects of cigarettes, and various researchers have shown that e-cigarettes have notable health hazards. Some of these side effects include increasing the risk of heart and cardiovascular complications.
What’s more, is that various other studies have also supported this proposition. In other words, teens who use e-cigarettes are likely to start smoking regular cigarettes as compared to those who don’t. However, these earlier studies were not accurate since they only involved teens in a specific region. Therefore, this was not a genuine representation of the entire U.S population.
The latest research, however, was more legitimate. It entailed a better representation of the US population with as many as 350 teens being randomly chosen from as many as 122 schools. They started by studying the smoking and vaping habits of the teens at the 12th grade. Following this, the habits were then surveyed one year later for comparison purposes.
In particular, the study showed that teens who said they had vaped in the 12th grade, had never tried a tobacco cigarette. Additionally, 31% went on to experiment with tobacco the next year. On the contrary, among teens who had not smoked or vaped cigarettes in the 12th grade, only 7% percent experimented with tobacco the following year.
Using e-cigarettes may make teens oblivious to the risks associated with consuming tobacco cigarettes. This does well to support the findings of the study. While 80% percent of the 12th grades knew smoking cigarettes had serious side effects, they were four more likely to change their perspectives one year later, as compared to those who did not.
The researchers also had some excellent insight into vaping. They wrote, "youths who starting using e-cigarettes at an early age since it tastes good, might be oblivious to the side effects. This is because they cannot detect any early immediate effects and therefore conclude the effects of smoking are not legitimate. "
These finding also demonstrate can also increase the likelihood of previous smokers adopting the habit again. This was evident in teens who had used cigarettes in the past but had not smoked recently when they participated in the study. In this specific group, those who had used e-cigarettes in 12th grade were two more times likely to say the consumer cigarettes the following year. This when compared to those who did not use e-cigarettes in the 12th grade.
Broadly speaking, the researchers determined that the new study may not show that vaping increased the likelihood of cigarette smoking. The study considered various factors related to increased effects of smoking, such as the participants race and gender. There are various other factors that the current study has failed to outline and that could play a major role in learning about smoking habits. These other factors include teen`s affiliation with the other smokers, the perception of friends attitudes and their rebelliousness levels.
