What exactly is vaping? Is it less harmful than smoking cigarettes? Is it hard to quit? These are all questions you may have about vaping – a relatively new way of using substances in Canada. Currently, there are still gaps in what’s known about the effects of vaping, especially when it comes to young people and long-term use. Just like with smoking or other substance use, learning about vaping can help you make the most informed choices possible. Here are some important things to know about vaping.
What is vaping?
The act of vaping is similar to smoking cigarettes. With vaping however, people breathe in a vapour (or heated aerosol), not smoke. This is done with a device called an e-cigarette (a.k.a. an electronic cigarette, e-cig, e-hookah or vape). These devices come in many forms including vape pens, box mods, pod devices and most recently, disposables. The vapour contains a number of chemicals, including nicotine in most cases, that give a similar feeling to smoking cigarettes. Some people may also use e-cigarettes for vaping other substances, like cannabis.
Why do some people vape?
People may choose to vape for different reasons. They may:
- be curious or want to experiment
- want to try or enjoy the flavours
- do it because their friends, family members or others are doing it
- think vaping is less harmful than cigarettes (or not harmful at all)
- use e-cigarettes as an alternative to smoking cigarettes
- think they can vape in more places than they can smoke
- enjoy doing “vape tricks” (e.g. making patterns with vapour as they exhale)
- use vaping as a weight management tool
- have a nicotine addiction
Is vaping less harmful than smoking cigarettes?
On social media, e-cigarettes are often marketed as less harmful than smoking cigarettes. From what’s known, vaping is likely to be less harmful than smoking cigarettes in terms of physical health risks, but unlikely to be completely harmless. Vaping nicotine or cannabis can be addictive – this is known. The research on long-term health effects of vaping is ongoing.
What are the potential risks of vaping?
Experts are still trying to fully understand all the possible effects of vaping. It’ll take some time before they’re known because these devices haven’t been around very long. There are many different factors to consider (e.g. how and how often a person uses them, there are thousands of brands and devices, differences in ingredients used, etc.).
Below are some potential health risks and other things to keep in mind about vaping.
- Short-term effects of vaping may include mouth / throat irritation, cough, shortness of breath, nausea, anxiety, low mood, sleep problems, and nicotine dependence or addiction.
- E-cigarettes have fewer chemicals (and at lower levels) compared to cigarettes. This means using e-cigarettes instead of regular cigarettes reduces a person’s exposure to some compounds known to cause cancer. It’s unknown what level of exposure is considered safe.
- E-cigarettes contain toxic chemicals but the long-term effects of vaping aren’t yet fully known.
- E-cigarettes can be very addictive. They usually contain nicotine, an addictive substance also found in cigarettes. This can lead to craving if someone stops using e-cigarettes. Nicotine can have many other effects, especially when inhaled, and can negatively affect a person’s lungs, heart, memory and concentration. It’s been reported that some e-cigarette brands have mislabeled the amount of nicotine in their products, so someone may be inhaling more than they think. Some people choose to use zero nicotine products.
- Using e-cigarettes as a way to quit / reduce smoking cigarettes has been promoted in ads and there’s some research to support this.
- Some studies report e-cigarette use may lead to smoking cigarettes. Many people who use e-cigarettes have a history of smoking cigarettes or use both at the same time. Using both at the same time is considered to be more harmful than just vaping.
- Vaping around other people and pets may expose them to the vaping aerosol as well (known as “second-hand” exposure). The risk to their health is unknown at this time.
How can I quit vaping?
Similar to smoking, there are some tips you can try if you want to quit vaping. Vaping may be difficult to stop, but it’s possible to quit, even if it takes a few tries. You can:
- talk to your health-care professional about vaping, your health and how to stop
- write down all the reasons you want to stop and put the list in a place where you’ll notice it often
- tell others about your plans to stop and ask them to support you as you go
- choose a “quit date” and try to stick to it
- ask a friend to stop vaping with you
- if you can’t quit right away, you can try starting by reducing your use (e.g. take fewer puffs less often, switch to a product with a lower concentration of nicotine, leave your vape at home, etc.)
- join a support group or start one of your own
- visit Resources Around Me for substance use support services near you
- reward yourself for your success
If you have questions about substance use and how to quit, you can talk to a health-care professional or someone else you trust. You can also connect with Kids Help Phone 24/7.
Kids Help Phone thanks Dr. Milan Khara and Dr. Leslie Phillips for their contributions to this page.
