It’s safe to say that vaping has become a fairly integrated part of today’s society as of late. In fact, it’s unlikely that you’ll walk down a street today without passing by a cloud of vapour, probably inhaling the sweet scent of caramel e liquid or one of the thousands of other flavours currently available on the market today. With that in mind, it’s easy to see why so many teenagers and young adults are turning to vaping as an alternative to cigarettes, but as parents, it’s understandable that some concerns are cropping up.

We’ve decided to take a deeper look into whether vaping is something worth worrying about, and whether vaping could be a healthier alternative to smoking.

The Argument For Vaping

With vaping still relatively new on the market, the information currently available as to its effects on the body, especially over the long term, is fairly thin on the ground. However, despite this, there is plenty of evidence suggesting that vaping is much healthier for us than smoking regular cigarettes and a lot of this comes down to the chemicals involved.

Without the need for combustion, you can eliminate many of the harmful chemicals that are present in cigarettes. You no longer need lead, formaldehyde, tar or hydrogen cyanide to name just a few, and instead, most e liquids will only contain propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, acetaldehyde and nitrosamines, alongside nicotine for liquids that contain it. For this reason, vaping is often considered much healthier for the lungs, at least on a shorter term basis.

The Dangers Of Smoking

By now, we’re all likely to be aware of the dangers that smoking poses to our health. With 20 or more chemicals present in a typical cigarette, smokers are constantly inhaling harmful substances that stick around in our lungs and cause long-term health problems.

As one of the leading causes of deaths in the UK and at fault for around 90% of lung cancers, smoking is a habit that thousands of people are trying to quit every single year.

It can also cause heart attacks, strokes, damage blood vessels, cause Coronary Heart Disease and even damage your lungs and lead to pneumonia. With so many dangers with smoking, concerns regarding the potential that vaping could do the same are understandable.

The Dangers Of Vaping

While the true dangers of vaping are currently unknown, there are a few things in particular that have flagged up concern.

From the chemicals that are included in e liquids, to exploding batteries, the health and safety involved in vaping hasn’t gone unscathed. In 2007, e-cigarettes were released to the world and since, over 200 cases of exploding batteries have been reported – not much in the grand scheme of things, but enough to raise concern.

As vapes grow in size and power, the potential for injury grows too and while battery regulation should prevent this from being the case, it’s a risk worth noting.

The Long Term Argument

While it’s difficult to determine the long-term effects of vaping, especially considering they have only been around for just over 10 years, a landmark study was conducted and in February 2017, the results announced that vaping led to fewer harmful chemicals present in blood, urine and saliva, and therefore was considered a healthier alternative for ex-smokers in a long-term situation.

With fewer harmful chemicals and better long-term prospects, vaping has so far been proven to be healthier than smoking. Therefore, while vaping is certainly not risk-free, for teenagers who may have smoked or are looking for a way to quit, vaping could be a viable alternative.