Though some perceive vaping to be less harmful than cigarettes, experts say this is not the whole story.

Dr. Meghan Rebuli, assistant professor of pediatrics at the UNC School of Medicine, said there are flaws in comparing vapes and other electronic cigarettes to traditional cigarettes. 

“The analogy that we like to make in our group is different because cigarettes and e-cigarettes aren’t in the same category,” Rebuli said. “They’re both inhaled products, and they both contain nicotine, but beyond that, it’s like comparing apples to oranges — they’re very different.”

The harmful effects of cigarettes are acknowledged largely because of widely publicized anti-smoking and anti-nicotine campaigns, including federal laws that require health warnings on cigarettes and cigarette advertisements. Though vapes contain nicotine, the association between those campaigns and the dangers of vaping is not yet solidified in the eyes of the public. 

Jeffrey Fay, alcohol and other drug education coordinator with NC State’s Prevention Services discussed the effectiveness of the anti-smoking campaigns. 

“Most young adults have been told that nicotine, cigarettes are unhealthy,” Fay said. “The majority of people who are in their 20s and 30s think of nicotine as being something that has been kind of demonized, but largely through smoking.”

Fay said the anti-smoking campaigns, while effective, prioritized linking the danger and damage of nicotine solely to cigarette use.

“Sometimes the rationale for why people will choose to vape is just because it’s been promoted as less dangerous than cigarettes,” Fay said. “The message that prevention counseling and the medical field are trying to get across is that somewhat less dangerous doesn’t mean not dangerous.”

The negative effects of vaping are largely focused on nicotine. Nicotine harm is notable at any age, but particularly in younger people.

“The use of nicotine prior to the age where your brain matures, which is 25 in most cases, can really change how your brain is wired,” Rebuli said. “This is problematic because it makes you more susceptible to being addicted to other harmful products.”

While there are rehabilitation programs and other measures to aid those addicted to various harmful products or substances, the fixes are retrospective. 

“Really, the only way to prevent that is to not use these products — especially when you’re under the age where your brain is matured and fully wired,” Rebuli said.

The negative effects of vaping aren’t limited to the effects of nicotine. The artificial flavorings in vapes, which draw in many consumers, may prove to be harmful as well, Rebuli said.

“Your body isn’t really equipped, lungs-wise, with the same kinds of enzymes, proteins and other molecules that are needed to break down these chemicals,” Rebuli said. 

The widely discussed negative effects of secondhand smoke from cigarettes apply to e-cigarette smoke as well. 

“New research that’s coming out suggests that even secondhand exposure to e-cigarette aerosol clouds can cause respiratory symptoms,” Rebuli said. “It may feel like if you’re using them, you’re only affecting yourself. But in all reality, those clouds that you’re creating aren’t just affecting you; they’re affecting people around you.”

Rebuli also said there are potentially negative effects of vaping that have not been discovered yet.

“I think we’re not far enough along in e-cigarette use to really understand the full long-term consequences,” Rebuli said. “That’s gonna take another couple of years to understand.”

Fay said it is difficult to break the cycle of being hooked and then becoming tolerant. 

“Our goal is not to demonize drug use,” Fay said. “Why someone would use nicotine is because it does things for them. Unfortunately, though, a lot of the ‘benefits’ are off, and that’s usually when tolerance comes in.”

Rebuli said the claim that vaping can be used for stress relief is not accurate.  

“The stress relief really comes from the nicotine hit, so it’s not really a ‘benefit,’ so to speak,” Rebuli said. “As soon as you get that initial nicotine hit, you’re going to be addicted to them. This stress-relieving feeling is really just relieving a nicotine craving.”

To seek help in quitting vaping or easing nicotine addiction, Rebuli said students should talk to Campus Health and look into national resources through the American Lung Association. 

For more addiction recovery resources, visit the Prevention Services website.