Teenagers who feel Juul duped them into e-cigarette nicotine addictions largely through advertising on social media are turning the tables on the e-cig giant. They believe because social media helped get them hooked, social media can help them quit vaping.

According to a Time article, Twitter hashtags include #ditchjuul as young people try to convince fellow vapers to quit. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sponsors the hashtag #TheRealCost to try to build anti-vaping message momentum.

Nearly 5 million teenagers currently vape, a statistic that caused the U.S. Surgeon General to declare underage vaping an epidemic in the country. Instagram, TikTok and Twitter posts from influencers and celebrities accompanied by #JuulLife have encouraged young people to vape the last few years.

Time magazine found several teenagers who are fed up with the entire vaping scene. Virginia high school senior Kamal Mazhar was tired of walking into a cloud of e-cigarette toxins in the school’s restroom. He and three friends created an Instagram page called Teens Against Vaping to share articles and posts that highlight the dangers of the social phenomenon.

Mazhar also testified in a Congressional hearing that Juul representatives spoke to their 9^thgrade class back in 2017 and told the teens that Juul products were “totally safe.”

Companies Fostered E-Cigarette Nicotine Addictions

Mazhar and his friends – along with the rest of us – now know that many Juul pods contain more nicotine than found in an entire pack of cigarettes.

In addition to ensuring an entire generation became chained to e-cigarette nicotine addictions, e-cig companies have exposed kids to a variety of different chemicals.

According to the American Lung Association, the e-juice in e-cigarettes usually contains propylene glycol, which is a common addictive that’s also used to make antifreeze and paint solvent. Many types of e-juice contain acetaldehyde and formaldehyde, both chemicals that are known to cause cancer.

Acrolein, an herbicide that kills weeds, is a common e-cigarette additive that can cause irreversible lung damage.

Diacetyl is a chemical that became associated with popcorn lung, a type of bronchiolitis obliterans that was found to affect workers in factories that made microwaveable popcorn. Diacetyl is a chemical that provides butter-like flavoring to the popcorn and to some e-juices.

Besides the above-mentioned propylene glycol, some e-juices contain diethylene glycol, a known toxin used in antifreeze that is linked to lung disease.

E-cigarette users may breathe in benzene, the same volatile organic compound found in car exhaust. Benzene is a natural component of crude oil and gasoline, and has been linked to leukemia.

The heating elements used in e-cigarettes also may cause the user to inhale nickel, tin, lead and cadmium.

In efforts to share all that is wrong with using e-cigarettes and convince youth to stop vaping, a half-dozen TikTok influencers have been hired by the anti-smoking group Truth Initiative to publish anti-vaping videos. According to the Truth Initiative, all TikTok users are encouraged to create anti-vaping videos and add the hashtag #ThisIsQuitting.

The Truth Initiative also published survey results indicating almost half of all 15- to 24-year-olds who vape have made a New Year’s resolution to stop vaping in 2020. More than 27 percent of high school students say they vape.

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This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.