Context:
What happens when a supposedly healthier alternative turns out to be more dangerous than the original? This is exactly what is occurring with modern gateway devices like e-cigarettes, vaping pens, Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS), heat-not-burn (HNB) devices, and other heated tobacco products (HTPs).
Relevance:
GS2- Health
Mains Question:
Portrayed as offering a healthier alternative to smoking and quitting tobacco, new-age devices like e-cigarettes, vaping pens etc are now causing a public health crisis among young people. Analyse. (10 Marks, 150 Words).
Concerns Associated with New-Age Devices:
- These devices were marketed as healthier alternatives to smoking, designed to make quitting tobacco easier. However, the reality is quite different.
- A new pandemic is emerging. Rather than helping people quit tobacco, manufacturers of these new-age gateway devices have found a profitable market in children, leading to a surge in youth vaping and creating a new epidemic.
- For instance, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2023, e-cigarettes were the most commonly used tobacco product among middle and high school students in the United States, with 2.1 million (7.7%) students using e-cigarettes, including 550,000 (4.6%) middle school students.
- These devices are now hooking a new generation on nicotine, exposing them to potential long-term health risks.
Impact of these Devices on Children:
- Children have been enticed into trying and becoming addicted to e-cigarettes and vaping devices through targeted marketing of flavors like strawberry, cotton candy, pop rocks, and lemonade.
- Beyond the alleged predatory marketing tactics, mental health issues and the negative effects of excessive technology use are also pushing some children toward these devices.
- The psychological impact on children operates on two levels. First, children are increasingly vulnerable to new-age devices from a very young age.
- What was once primarily an adolescent issue—engaging in distracting activities and developing addictive behaviors—has now extended to children under 10, who are showing signs of vulnerability.
- The age group most at risk remains those between 10 and 20 years old, a demographic that manufacturers reportedly target with appealing advertising and enticing vape flavors.
- The colorful imagery associated with these new-age gateway devices suggests that they bring happiness and elevate social status, drawing in targeted children.
- In their desire to fit in, children often prioritize peer preferences over their own, leading them to embrace vaping and other harmful behaviors.
- Those who vape are more likely to experience loneliness and social isolation compared to their peers who do not.
- These psychological factors are contributing to a troubling rise in children being attracted to alluring electronic devices like vapes and e-cigarettes.
A Gateway to Danger:
- Another critical aspect is the impact these habits have on the physical and mental well-being of children.
- While the physical effects, such as lung damage and the spread of e-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injury (EVALI), have become apparent, it’s equally important to focus on the mental health impact of these new-age gateway devices on children.
- The Australian Institute of Family Studies, a statutory agency of the Australian government, has reported evidence indicating that vaping has harmful effects on those who use e-cigarettes.
- With the rising rates of e-cigarette use in Australia and globally, these new-age gateway devices are linked to mental health issues such as depressive symptoms, anxiety, perceived stress, and suicide-related behaviors among adolescents.
- Key risk factors include positive peer attitudes towards vaping and parental smoking. E-cigarettes are particularly addictive for individuals up to around the age of 25, a developmental stage that makes them especially susceptible to the structural and chemical changes caused by nicotine addiction.
- Once addiction sets in, it can increase the likelihood of developing other substance use disorders later in life, creating a vicious cycle.
- So, what is inside these new-age gateway devices that is driving this increased addiction?
Survey Findings:
- In November 2022, *JAMA Network Open*, a medical journal published by the American Medical Association, released findings from a survey of over 150,000 respondents.
- The survey revealed that more adolescent e-cigarette users reported using their first tobacco product within five minutes of waking compared to users of cigarettes and other tobacco products combined.
- This highlights the powerful grip that nicotine addiction has on the adolescent brain.
- The study further explained that e-cigarettes are highly engineered drug delivery devices designed to create and sustain addiction.
- Later versions of e-cigarettes, particularly those developed after 2015, became more efficient at delivering nicotine.
- The addition of benzoic acid to the nicotine e-liquid produces protonated nicotine, which increases the addictive potential by making it easier for users to inhale large quantities of nicotine—levels that are difficult to achieve with traditional cigarettes or earlier e-cigarette models. This results in heightened addiction and a stronger mental dependency on these devices.
- Moreover, these new-age gateway devices are also being used to experiment with more potent substances such as cannabis, and even cocaine and heroin.
Conclusion:
Instead of aiding in quitting, these devices have sparked a public health crisis, causing physical harm and impacting the mental well-being of children. Many children, teenagers, and even parents mistakenly believe that vaping only involves harmless water vapor and pleasant flavors. The reality, however, is far more dangerous and can lead to a lifetime of substance abuse problems.
