The Vaping Epidemic

[Cheesenugget]

My husband smokes cigs and vapes. I don't do either, tried both, never liked it. Smoked pot too. I am still open for pot but I would not pay for it. I never feel the need or desire for this type of hobby, I suppose.

My understanding in life is this: everything is out to kill you, either slowly or acutely. The air you breathe is polluted (man made or otherwise), the food you eat probably has cancer agents or bacteria or whatever (unless you grow your own food and cook the meat thoroughly), and the water you drink probably is contaminated with whatever.

If it is not cigs or vapes, it is something else. The clothes we wear are not exactly chemical free either, or the plastics we use, the list goes on. Regulations are a good thing, but with a good lawyer, you can work around that. Sad to say, laws and rules keep people like me in the legal field working so I can't complain. There are jobs involved, such as those in the factories or marketing. And the government clearly knows all this. The rules are there to please the masses. This is all the same in most societies, it is just the poorer you are, the less likely they need to pretend that they care with less rules, bigger loopholes and less enforcement. Think about it, you are trying to tell someone what to do. How well did it go for you the last time you try to warn someone of the risk of overeating due to health reasons (ie obesity, diabetes, high salt intake, etc), and how well did that go for you? Most consumers have an inkling that there is risk in anything you consume. And unless they want to stop supporting said product, regulations will do very little about it. Again, follow the money.

Anyways, life is too short. Vape away at your own risk. But if it brings enjoyment to your life, what does it really matter? If if is not the vaping, something else will probably kill you first. Just saying.

[MasonC2K]

From what I have read it is not even real vape that is the issue but black market stuff laced with things.

But I don't think anyone should be inhaling anything other than oxygen unless it is for a medicinal purpose.

[ladywhipple02]

I got back and forth on stuff like this. I've never smoked anything - I was raised with my dad smoking and hearing him hack every morning really put me off of it. I also like things very clean, to the point of being nearly OCD about it, and don't like how smoking anything makes this smell and can leave yellow stains. Gross in my opinion. BUT, I have a very firm belief in not judging others. I have my addictions - I have struggled with eating and over-eating all my life, using it as a crutch for my feelings. I have also recently struggled with drinking. I also have a very grounded belief in living your life to the fullest. I'm only 35 years old and I've had a lot of death in my life - my mom died very young, all of my grandparents are gone, and I've had a few friends my own age or younger pass from various things, some health related, some not. If something makes you happy and brings you enjoyment - and, of course NOT HURTING ANYONE ELSE - I find a hard time holding it against you. We aren't guaranteed anything in this life, especially a time frame.

So I guess IDK...

[FollowTheSun]

not to mention 1 juul pod has more tobacco than an entire pack of cigarettes,

Wow!

[FollowTheSun]

Coming in here as a nurse and someone who tries to know what they are putting in their body-- like others said it's probably just poor regulation and putting all kinds of who-knows-what into those products because they are not regulated. Anything that goes into our bodies needs to have full disclosure of what's in it and be regularly tested to make sure those things are safe.

Remember the vitamin scares a year or so back? There were all kinds of things in the vitamins not listed on the ingredients, and a lot of them didn't even have what was supposed to be in them!

BTW I have never smoked anything . . lifelong asthmatic. I don't understand the appeal of smoking/vaping/etc. but I do enjoy my coffee, so I imagine it's something like that for smokers.

[sur3fir3]

I think a lot of this has to do with deregulation in the vaping corporations, and so many newer companies trying to capitalize off of the vaping craze. (ill name names... juul.) they put so many chemicals into their pods.. not to mention 1 juul pod has more tobacco than an entire pack of cigarettes, and juuls "anti smoking campaigns" for teens/young adults are just pro vaping campaigns and claim its better for you (it poses the exact same risks as smoking.) not to mention the flavors, though nice for legal adults, are 100% contributing to the amount of nicotine addicted teens and children.

another thing to mention, with thc/cdb vaping, getting cartridges off the street is so dangerous because they are more likely to be not just watered down but full of chemicals and sometimes even laced. so if you are in a state where thc is illegal, or too young, buying it off the street is a huge huge risk many may not realize. this is the same with buying juul pods or nicotine vape cartridges off the street when you are underage. its all so dangerous.
((of course vaping is a good way to help quit smoking for people who were already cigarette addicted, but now with all the chemicals being put into it... im not so sure! ))

all in all, i think there should be MUCH more regulation on these.

anyone else have any thoughts?

The reason 1 juul pod has more nicotine than a pack of ciggarettes is because a single juul pod lasts for about a week. When I was smoking I when through a pack every 5 days. How much nicotine is relative to how long the pod lasts. Not to mention the issue with people dying is from Vitamin E Acetate. This is not found in commercial Vape juice. It is only found in black market stuff. Also I agree that there needs to be regulation, but, and this is a big but, banning flavors is not the answer. That will just push people to buy on the black market.

[sur3fir3]

Coming in here as a nurse and someone who tries to know what they are putting in their body-- like others said it's probably just poor regulation and putting all kinds of who-knows-what into those products because they are not regulated. Anything that goes into our bodies needs to have full disclosure of what's in it and be regularly tested to make sure those things are safe.

Remember the vitamin scares a year or so back? There were all kinds of things in the vitamins not listed on the ingredients, and a lot of them didn't even have what was supposed to be in them!

BTW I have never smoked anything . . lifelong asthmatic. I don't understand the appeal of smoking/vaping/etc. but I do enjoy my coffee, so I imagine it's something like that for smokers.

OK Since you are a nurse you must agree that putting an oil in your lungs that only has about 5 ingredients, is better than a combustible that has thousands of ingredients.

[Bogertophis]

...

My understanding in life is this: everything is out to kill you, either slowly or acutely. The air you breathe is polluted (man made or otherwise), the food you eat probably has cancer agents or bacteria or whatever (unless you grow your own food and cook the meat thoroughly), and the water you drink probably is contaminated with whatever.

... if it brings enjoyment to your life, what does it really matter? If if is not the vaping, something else will probably kill you first. Just saying.

Yes, our world is FILLED with risk factors...we can't do anything about our genes, only some about our luck (as in what we're exposed to), but we CAN make the best
choices when it comes to the care we take of ourselves. Just because it's not an immediate danger doesn't mean the bad choices you make for your health don't add up.

Psychologically your answer is typical, since studies show that most people want immediate rewards in life, & are less likely to work toward long-range goals, even when
it concerns our health, not just financial savings & such. It's easier for young people to dismiss health concerns...it's only after you lose your health that you realize how
much it affects your entire life & limits your happiness. My parents were heavy smokers, so while that exposure was not healthy for me & my siblings growing up, it did
manage to cure me of any curiosity or desire to smoke, ever. For that, I'm grateful.

Quitting is obviously hard. But so is having lung cancer or COPD and a shorter life. Personally, I like improving my odds of staying healthy.

[Craiga 01453]

The way I see it, I'm 40 years old. I am old enough to make my own choices. Let me vape.

Plain and simple, it all comes down to the almighty dollar. Big Tobacco is seeing something cut into their profits. Since Big Tobacco is in the government pocket, they're squashing vaping.
Not because it might be harmful, but because of the almighty dollar.

If our health and safety were their concern cigarettes would be coming off the shelves too. It is well known cigarettes kill thousands and thousands of people each year. So clearly our public safety is not their concern.

And for those who say it's geared towards kids with all the fun flavors...why can vodka come in bubblegum, cotton candy, fruit loops, birthday cake and a million other flavors??

Again, this is not for our public safety, it's about money.

You can buy alcohol, tobacco, legal marijuana, a freaking gun!! Government is opening facilities for people to "safely" shoot heroin without fear of being arrested and be medically treated with Narcan if they OD.

And you want to take flavored nicotine away???

Don't Tread On Me!!!!!!!!!!

[sur3fir3]

The way I see it, I'm 40 years old. I am old enough to make my own choices. Let me vape.

Plain and simple, it all comes down to the almighty dollar. Big Tobacco is seeing something cut into their profits. Since Big Tobacco is in the government pocket, they're squashing vaping.
Not because it might be harmful, but because of the almighty dollar.

If our health and safety were their concern cigarettes would be coming off the shelves too. It is well known cigarettes kill thousands and thousands of people each year. So clearly our public safety is not their concern.

And for those who say it's geared towards kids with all the fun flavors...why can vodka come in bubblegum, cotton candy, fruit loops, birthday cake and a million other flavors??

Again, this is not for our public safety, it's about money.

You can buy alcohol, tobacco, legal marijuana, a freaking gun!! Government is opening facilities for people to "safely" shoot heroin without fear of being arrested and be medically treated with Narcan if they OD.

And you want to take flavored nicotine away???

Don't Tread On Me!!!!!!!!!!

I couldn't have said this better myself. Those who would give up privacy for a bit of security deserve neither privacy nor security.