By Amal Ali (‘21)
“Juuling” is becoming a more common term used by teens in America. The term “juuling” comes from Juul, a new type of e-cigarette. The vaping device has become a popular trend among teens, and has increased the likelihood in smoking for the younger generation. A vape, another name for the device, can appear unapparent, drawing resemblance to a flash drive or USB.
The vapor included in a Juul contains nicotine, which is extracted from tobacco, mixed with a base. This vapor comes in flavors such as mango, mint and crème brûlée which is a major reason for their popularity amidst teens. Since Juuls have hit the market, the company JUULs’ profits have increased 97 percent to $1.96 billion, all within a time period of 52 weeks.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began to threaten major stores such as JUUL and other e-cigarette manufacturers that sell Juuls with a deadline of two months to demonstrate how they’ll keep devices out of the hands of young people. The FDA believes it is completely necessary to ban flavored e-cigarettes because they are popular with young people. E-cigarette companies have responded saying that they want to keep these devices out of the hands of young people, however the approach of selling flavored pods to the adolescence raises concern.
Sophomore Katrina Peralta stated that “juuling” is becoming “more and more popular” and is occasionally talked about in school.
Peralta said, “You’ll hear the word Juul maybe once a day, or see it on social media. It’s the new norm.”
On September 12, the FDA issued several new policies in order to control the amount of Juuls sold to teens. These policies impose sale restrictions on flavored e-cigarettes, ban menthol cigarettes and flavored cigarettes, and putting age limits in outlets and online.
Menthol cigarettes are an alternative to cigarettes, and are also being restricted to ensure that teens will not resolve to these sticks after having flavored pods taken away.
The additional policies prevent buyers from purchasing pods and Juuls unless they are 18 or older prevent nicotine addiction early in life.
The constraint on Juuls were extremely controversial among the smoking community.
Advocates for the cigarette say that it will damage the progress adult smokers have made who switched the Juuls, while health experts say this move is a start to preventing addiction.
The e-cigarette was created in order to help adults stop smoking. However, the National Academies of Science Engineering and Medicine has stated that the use of an e-cigarettes increases risk of using combustible tobacco cigarettes in the future. More than 2 million
middle and high schoolers possess an e-cigarette in America, which is helping create a society with several health problems in the future.
Junior and Senior Nurse Ms. Donna Moreen said that Juuls not only contain nicotine but other substances, like formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a colorless, flammable gas at room temperature and when inhaled can result in cancer.
Nurse Moreen said,“While you think you are buying a vape filled with just nicotine, you may be getting something else. It is important to be careful when a company markets a Juul as safer than cigarettes when in reality, it is just as dangerous.”
Sophomore Jasmin Patel said that “Juuls are becoming common almost everywhere and if you walk outside in a town or city you’ll most likely see one person vaping.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that 99% of convenience stores, supermarkets and vendors sell Juuls that contain nicotine, an addictive substance which impacts adolescent brain development.
The human brain does not fully develop until the age of 25, meaning that the impact of nicotine at such an early age creates several teens to be at risk for behavioral impairments and not retain as a receptive of an attention span or memory.
Other health effects from juuling can range from irritating ones eyes to brain damage, and finally interfere with one's heart. Heart cells can be damaged and a deadly result is heart disease, which is a common side effect when smoking nicotine. Nicotine is a stimulant, and will cause your heart to beat unusually fast, resulting in high blood pressure.
The effects of the new e-cigarettes are deadly, and will create several health problems in the future due to nicotine and chemicals included in the vapor.
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