New Study Shows Most Teens Not Using Nicotine While Vaping

New Study Shows Most Teens Not Using Nicotine While Vaping
Taken from ChurnMag published August 31. Writer: Jimmy Hafrey

New studies out this week have proven what most in the vaping community already know: teens are using vaping for flavor, not nicotine.

Both Tech Times and The Daily Caller are reporting on a new study out this week from the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research. The study showed that while vaping is gaining popularity, most teens are using e-liquids that don’t contain any nicotine.

The study, which was published in the British Medical Journal’s Tobacco Control, was conducted by polling over 15,000 students across the United States at the eighth, 10th, and 12th grades. These students were asked about their vaping habits and, more importantly, why they vape.

Over 65 percent of all students polled revealed that they vaped for flavor and not for nicotine. Just 20 percent of the same demographic said they used vaping devices for the nicotine. This is a far cry from the so-called “majority of teens” vaping for nicotine that anti-vaping advocates have been claiming for years now.

In fact, the researchers noted this about the study: “These results indicate that while taking into account vaporizer use does indeed increase tobacco/nicotine prevalence, the impact of the vaporizers is likely not as large as might appear by their recent, dramatic increase in use among adolescents.”

The fact that two in three students reported they vaped without nicotine calls into question the idea that there is a “nicotine epidemic” among adolescents. The rise in vaping habits among young adults and teenagers seems to be linked to the fact that they can vape flavor, a factor that is right in line with a teenager’s culinary habits.

But there may be one surprising reason why teenagers don’t use nicotine. As more than one publication has mentioned in the past and is perhaps best put by Gizmodo in a 2014 article:

“[T]he less nicotine you use, the better your liquid will taste.”

As many vapers know, nicotine is a flavor-killer. This is because the ingredient has a distinct, bitter taste that is difficult to cover up. The more nicotine in a flavor, the more distinct the nicotine flavor will be. That’s why so many vape flavors are sweet, and therefore attractive, to teenagers.

It’s important to note that the main ingredients in all vape juices are propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin, FDA-approved substances that are suitable for human consumption. The fact that teenagers are vaping these ingredients along with flavoring is not harmful to them is not the issue here. The misinformation campaign about the rise of teens vaping nicotine e-liquid is what’s worrisome.

However, as harmless as vaping may be for teenagers, ChurnMag continues its position on advocating for vaping age barriers. It is the belief of this publication that vaping is for adults who understand how this product can be a safer alternative to smoking.

It is also important to call out exaggerations of vaping when they arise. The fear of students using vaping for nicotine seems to have been overstated by some zealous anti-vaping advocates. Now that this issue has been cleared up, it is important to move on to other important aspects of vaping, such as the overreach of the FDA regulations.

 

For myself, I don't see a point in vaping if not for the nic. Flavors are just a bonus to getting my nic fix. If I want to taste a cheesecake I'd rather eat one than vaporize it. I think teens pick up vaping because its trendy and they have friends doing it (the same reason many of use started smoking cigs as a teen). Of course there not going to say that on a survey.

The fact that their vaping non-nic is irrelevant to the health concerns. Much of the research on vaping focuses on the flavorings being a possible health risk. Not the nicotine.

Suitable for human consumption as in ingesting it or applying it to skin. Not heating it into a vapor and inhaling it over and over again every day. As far as I'm aware theres no study that proves the long term effects of vaping will not produce a negative health effect.
Its pretty clear that vaping wont give you the same health problems that cigarettes do, but to say that vaping pg/vg/flavoring carry's no long term harm is not exactly a proven fact yet.

Perfect line for a anti-vaper to quote when saying that the companies are marketing to children.

Yes it is. It's important to call out exaggerations on both sides of the argument.

Vaping is a harm reduction method to stay off cigarettes. Non-smokers (teen or adult) should not start vaping (nic or non-nic) IMHO.

 

In all honesty with the tactics used by big tobacco combatting just plain packaging on cigarettes I'm not sure it makes any difference what terminology is used by pro vaping groups or whether teens are vaping with or without nic. Big tobacco will come after vaping hard to try and get the laws to flavour their, so far, far inferior products. If every underage vaper stopped tomorrow and nic was no longer used by anyone they will still fight tooth and nail to corner the vaping market using skewed laws to keep their profit margins up there.