Vaping, Juuling, and e-cigarettes have all been drawn into the spotlight this year. Their usage has caught the attention of a younger more vulnerable group of people. Vape usage has been on the rise among teenagers. The vapors fruity flavors and the Juul’s discrete look has drawn in teenagers into this new “trend.”

A Juul is an e-cigarette that looks similar to a USB and uses liquid-filled pods. Each pod contains as much nicotine as 20 cigarettes and in some cases, people are going through 5 pods a week. That is a total of 100 cigarettes worth of nicotine in one week.  

That amount of nicotine can create a permanent addiction in teens and hardwire the need for the addictive chemical. It can turn into a lifetime addiction and make teens four times more likely to begin smoking cigarettes. Not only is the addiction bad, the vape juice market is new and has little to no monitoring. Many juices have been linked to illness and may include cancer-causing chemicals.

The best way to avoid the risk of illness is not to vape at all. However, if you have already started and have formed an addiction, the best thing to do is get rid of the Juul and find something that has a lot less nicotine. After that, slowly lower the dosage and usage of the vape until the urge is little to none. Then, you can quit. Nicotine withdrawal can create irritability, muscle spasms, headache, cough ( getting all the chemicals out of your body), and rapid heartbeat. It won’t be easy, but you will feel better knowing you are not held down by addiction.