Other forms of smoking
Health and other forms of smoking
The fight against smoking continues. The industry is reinventing itself and creating new products that, despite their harmless appearance, are as harmful or even more so than conventional cigarettes.
Other forms of smoking
Francisco Casas, a pulmonologist at the San Cecilio Clinic, warns of this new epidemic of young faces and is very concerned about the general lack of knowledge surrounding vapers, hookahs and electronic cigarettes.
The number of young people who smoke has dropped by a third since the beginning of this century, and yet we cannot be happy. Why?
Because, although the prevalence of conventional tobacco consumption has been reduced, the consumption of other emerging forms of smoking has been increasing and now exceeds that of conventional tobacco among adolescents.
19.2% of young people between 14 and 18 years old smoke or consume some tobacco derivative. But vapers are the preferred choice for one in five.
Followed by hookahs, which are used by 14.3%, while 13.1% opt for conventional cigarettes.
It was thought that electronic cigarettes or vapers could be a less harmful substitute than tobacco, but this is not the case.
E-cigarettes are not harmless for active or passive smokers.
E-cigarette and vape smoke contain the same harmful constituents as conventional cigarettes: volatile organic compounds, hydrocarbons, heavy metals and may contain nicotine.
And they don’t help you quit smoking either?
They do not help you quit smoking or consume less cigarettes. In addition, these devices are the gateway to nicotine addiction.
What happens to our lungs when we vape?
In adolescents, lung development is slowed down, which usually forms in girls until the age of 18 and in boys until the age of 22.
In addition, it causes irritation and inflammation of the respiratory mucosa: chronic bronchitis, asthma, bronchiolitis and interstitial lung diseases.
Moreover, it destroys the alveoli and produces cellular mutations with the development of lung cancer.
Is it necessary to have a very strong habit to cause damage to the body?
As with conventional tobacco consumption, the number of cigarettes smoked daily and the number of years of consumption are factors involved in greater damage to the body.
However, there are factors linked to each individual that can make them more susceptible, such as genetic factors for lung cancer or asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
They also have a very strong social component. A clear example is hookahs, which have become widespread in nightlife… Are they safe?
Not at all, they are even more harmful than conventional tobacco.
Is it true that a hookah session is equivalent to inhaling 200 times the smoke of a cigarette?
A single puff is almost equal to the volume of smoke inhaled by an entire cigarette.
The volume of smoke inhaled during a typical hookah session is approximately 90 liters, which is equivalent to 200 puffs, compared to the 0.5 liters inhaled when smoking a cigarette.
And yet there is more social permissiveness. Why?
Much of the blame for this permissiveness lies with society’s ignorance, and in particular, that of parents and educators. Sometimes we are carried away by the tobacco industry’s messages about its safety and supposedly lower addictive capacity.
After 30 years of prevention campaigns or restrictive laws, tobacco consumption has been reduced.
How many years do you think it will take now to minimize the impact of these new harmful habits?
I couldn’t tell you how many, certainly many, more than ten years and everything will depend on the messages that are transmitted to the general population and to young people in particular through the media and social networks.
It will also depend on the measures taken by public administrations to equate the consumption of these products with conventional tobacco, establishing the same prohibitions on their consumption by minors and for smoke-free spaces.
The active fight against the tobacco industry and its false messages is another of the battles.
Finally, tell a young person reading this what benefits they might notice when they quit smoking.
The first and most immediate thing you will notice is the decrease or disappearance of your cough; you will have a greater ability to practice sports and your oral health will improve.
In addition, tobacco accelerates cellular aging, specifically of the skin, and promotes hair loss, which will improve. Getting rid of nicotine addiction is another great advantage of quitting.
Source: Centro Andaluz Alfa 1, Ideal Granada