• Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
Podcast
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
24/7 Health News
No Result
View All Result
Home Article

Learning about the health risks of vaping can encourage young vapers to rethink their habit

February 15, 2023
in Article
0
Learning about the health risks of vaping can encourage young vapers to rethink their habit
file 20230214 14 oczc6l
More than one-third of teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 have tried vaping. (Shutterstock)

Vaping is most prevalent in Canada among 15- to 24-year-olds, and has significantly increased since e-cigarettes with nicotine were legalized in 2018. Ensuring that young people understand the health risks involved may help encourage them to steer clear of vaping.

Recent data from Statistics Canada show that more than one-third of teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 have tried vaping, and 15 per cent report having done so within the last 30 days. Of those who reported vaping in last 30 days, approximately 80 per cent had vaped nicotine.

Unfortunately, teens may underestimate the amount of nicotine in the vaping products they use, while one in 10 users reported having tried vaping without knowing whether it contained nicotine.

There is evidence that vaping among young people may be a “gateway behaviour” to cigarette use — another smoking behaviour that contains nicotine. By extension, we may be seeing a new generation of tobacco smokers who will likely have serious health problems.

Table of Contents

  • Health risks
  • Health risk information and vaping
  • What’s next?

Health risks

Vaping is not without health risks. Some studies suggest that it could lead to lung damage or even pneumonia. Many vaping products in Canada and the United States have also been made with fruit-flavoured aerosols, leading to concern from some advocates about how these products are marketed and their potential appeal to young people.

In response, Health Canada and advocates have called for more measures beyond warning labels on e-cigarette products, including ways to make them less accessible to youths, particularly when it comes to online sales which can be difficult to regulate for teens.

Working in the area of behavioural medicine with expertise in health behaviour change, our research suggests ways to help university students steer away from vaping. Providing health risk information about vaping through expert advice and personal testimonies is an effective strategy. This is important because it tells us how information can be presented to have a strong impact on how young adults think about the consequences of vaping.

A hand holding a vaping device surrounded by smoke against a black background
Vaping in young people may be a gateway behaviour to cigarette use.
(Shutterstock)

In January 2021, we conducted a 45-day study on undergraduate students from six provinces, all of whom consistently vaped e-cigarettes. Most vaped at least five to 15 times a month.

Our goal was to investigate whether young adults can refrain from vaping using an informational video about the potential health risks of vaping told by health experts and other e-cigarette users. Participants were randomized into two groups: one watched the vaping information video, and a control group watched a more general nutrition and healthy lifestyle video that did not offer in-depth information on the health effects of vaping.

Health risk information and vaping

Over the course of 45 days, we followed the students to see how their feelings about vaping changed. We found that those who viewed the informational video were more likely to express intentions to stop or reduce their vaping habits.

Those feelings remained strong over the study period, including three follow-up sessions when participants were asked to report how they felt about the perceived severity of the threats posed by vaping and their vulnerability to them.

The study showed vaping intentions — and, to a lesser degree, vaping behaviour itself — can be reduced after learning about the potential consequences in this way. The students’ intentions were significantly altered after learning about possible health effects, but those intentions to reduce vaping were not seen in the control group. The emphasis on intention formation is crucial because it drives the necessary actions (such as goal setting and motivation) towards achieving the desired change.

Overall, vaping use in both groups dropped over the study, however this drop was more pronounced in the intervention group, specifically towards the end of the study. This intervention does underline a successful strategy to reach young people engaged in harmful behaviours.

What’s next?

Curbing vaping remains the ultimate goal. While health risk information can lead regular vapers in university to form intentions to vape less, more research is needed on how to convert those intentions into convincing behaviour change. For now, to reduce harmful habits like vaping, we encourage others to educate themselves on the potential harms of these behaviours.

Evidence of health risks associated with the use of e-cigarettes continues to grow. However, there is limited evidence to illustrate health benefits of stopping vaping. Research is needed to address this knowledge gap.

Similar to tobacco and cigarettes in the past, a full understanding of the harm from using vaping products, and how reducing their use affects one’s health, may take several decades. Current evidence suggests e-cigarette use may follow the trend of tobacco cigarettes: multiple long-term health risks with continued use.

As the literature on the short-term health consequences of vaping behaviour continues to mount, and as the vaping market continues to grow, research identifying effective health behaviour change strategies to curb intentions to vape and vaping use are paramount.

We envision provincial and federal health agencies will implement evidence-based interventions like our study in settings like schools, clinics and community centres to help clear the “smoke” around the true health effects and harms of vaping to motivate them to steer away.

The Conversation

Babac Salmani does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Harry Prapavessis receives funding from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI); Canadian Cancer Society (CCS); Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR); Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

ShareTweetSharePin
Previous Post

Bird flu continues to spread in mammals – what this means for humans and wildlife

Next Post

Being declared dead when you’re still alive – why these very rare events occur

Next Post
Being declared dead when you’re still alive – why these very rare events occur

Being declared dead when you're still alive – why these very rare events occur

Most Read

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

What causes stuttering? A speech pathology researcher explains the science and the misconceptions around this speech disorder

December 15, 2022
morning back pain

Morning Again Ache Trigger Is Not the Mattress

October 11, 2021
lower back pain relief exercises

5 decrease again ache aid workouts

October 11, 2021
3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

3 years after legalization, we have shockingly little information about how it changed cannabis use and health harms

October 15, 2021
Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

Nasal vaccines promise to stop the COVID-19 virus before it gets to the lungs – an immunologist explains how they work

December 14, 2022
bleeding in gum

When The Bleeding in gum Is Severe ?

October 11, 2021
Good Night Sleep

6 Causes of Good Evening Sleep

October 11, 2021

COVID vaccines: how one can pace up rollout in poorer international locations

October 5, 2021
Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

Ten small changes you can make today to prevent weight gain

October 12, 2021
Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

Support and collaboration with health-care providers can help people make health decisions

December 16, 2021
Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

Greece to make COVID vaccines mandatory for over-60s, but do vaccine mandates work?

December 1, 2021

Multiple sclerosis: the link with earlier infection just got stronger – new study

October 12, 2021
News of war can impact your mental health — here’s how to cope

Binge-eating disorder is more common than many realise, yet it’s rarely discussed – here’s what you need to know

December 2, 2022
Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

Nurses’ attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccination for their children are highly influenced by partisanship, a new study finds

December 2, 2022
Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

Kick up your heels – ballroom dancing offers benefits to the aging brain and could help stave off dementia

January 3, 2023
How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

How hot is too hot for the human body? Our lab found heat + humidity gets dangerous faster than many people realize

July 6, 2022
The promise of repairing bones and tendons with human-made materials

The promise of repairing bones and tendons with human-made materials

January 4, 2022
As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

As viral infections skyrocket, masks are still a tried-and-true way to help keep yourself and others safe

December 14, 2022
How regulatory agencies, not the courts, are imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates

How regulatory agencies, not the courts, are imposing COVID-19 vaccine mandates

October 24, 2021
Heart disease risk from saturated fats may depend on what foods they come from – new research

Heart disease risk from saturated fats may depend on what foods they come from – new research

November 29, 2021
Late night eating may cause greater weight gain – new research points to why

Late night eating may cause greater weight gain – new research points to why

October 12, 2022

10 Things I Learned During My Body Transformation

October 12, 2021

7 Health Benefits of Sweet Potatoes

October 12, 2021
Nobel prize: how chilli peppers helped researchers uncover how humans feel pain

Nobel prize: how chilli peppers helped researchers uncover how humans feel pain

October 12, 2021
How air filters can make COVID wards safer for patients and staff

How air filters can make COVID wards safer for patients and staff

December 1, 2021
GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

GPs don’t give useful weight-loss advice – new study

December 16, 2022
Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

Four ways to avoid gaining weight over the festive period – but also why you shouldn’t fret about it too much

December 22, 2022
Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

Five ways to avoid pain and injury when starting a new exercise regime

December 30, 2022
Why suicide prevention support is crucial for people with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

Why suicide prevention support is crucial for people with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

September 28, 2022
Too hot to handle: Climate considerations for youth sport during the hottest years on record

Too hot to handle: Climate considerations for youth sport during the hottest years on record

July 19, 2022
  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS

  • Home
  • Health & Wellness
  • Disclaimer
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice

© 2020 DAILY HEALTH NEWS