By Meagan K.

Instead of launching with clear warning labels, vapes debuted in neon colors with flavors like blue razz ice, cotton candy, and dulce de leche — all in an effort to cater to younger audiences. They were supposed to be a better alternative to smoking: no smell, no risk. But that illusion is cracking as the consequences of vapes are emerging. To no one’s surprise, the youth are paying the price. 

One Juul pod contains approximately 20 cigarettes’ worth of nicotine. Nic salts absorb rapidly and hit harder than nicotine found in cigarettes, explaining why 53.1 percent of past 30-day users reported being “a little” or “very addicted.” The largest group of vape consumers is 18 to 25, closely followed by kids aged 12 to 17. Young adults who believed vapes were fairly harmless are getting diagnosed with illnesses like popcorn lung, EVALI, and lipoid pneumonia. 

The true danger isn’t the chemicals in the device, but its convenience: Vapes are discreet, and users can partake more often and with few social consequences. Step into any school bathroom today, and you’re likely to find a group congregated around the sink, nonchalantly passing a community vape around. And when they’re done, it’s tucked into a sleeve, and that’s it — no penalties incurred.

The only way to reverse this trend is to treat vapes the same way we do cigarettes.

Cigarettes lost popularity thanks to anti-smoking campaigns in the 1990s and 2000s, which led to smokers being embarrassed to light one up. Then came smoke rooms and, finally, no smoking indoors. While vapes don’t have the same repulsive smell, they can still induce asthma attacks in bystanders. If stigma is the only way to address the vaping crisis, it’s about time we brought it back.

The United States could also learn from Australia, which tightened regulations last year. Now, vapes can only be sold at pharmacies, and only to help smokers quit. The country also restricts flavors to mint, menthol, and tobacco, and packaging must adhere to plain pharmaceutical standards. Maybe if we stopped camouflaging these vapes as toys, kids would stop treating them that way.