Vaping might look cool or harmless, but it is dangerous for your health. This article explains what vapes are, what they contain and how they can harm your body, especially if you are young.

Jump to:

• What vapes are and how they work
• What makes vaping harmful
• Why vape flavours are not safe
• How vaping harms young people
• Why vapes are not safer than cigarettes
• What vaping does to your lungs
• How vaping can lead to smoking
• Why vapes are not helpful for quitting smoking

What Vapes Are and How They Work

Vapes are electronic gadgets that turn liquid into vapour for you to breathe in. These are also called:

• E-cigarettes
• E-vaporisers
• ENDS (electronic nicotine delivery systems)
• Hookah pens
• E-hookahs
• E-cigars
• E-pipes

Vapes come in all sizes and shapes. Some look like pens, USB sticks or a toy. They run on batteries, and although they do not create smoke like cigarettes, they are still harmful.

What Makes Vaping Harmful

Vaping is harmful to both users and people nearby.

• Most vapes contain nicotine, which is addictive.
• Vapour from vapes contains harmful chemicals, such as:
  • Cancer-causing agents
  • Fine particles that can enter your lungs
  • Toxic metals from the heating device
• Some vapes now contain unknown substances, such as drugs. There could be dangerous side effects from inhaling these substances.
• Vaping has been linked to lung injuries and long-term health effects that may not show up right away.

Note: Because vapes are still new, more health risks may emerge in future. 

Why Vape Flavours Are Not Safe

Many vapes have sweet flavours like fruits or candy. These contain chemicals such as:

• Propylene glycol (PG)
• Vegetable glycerine (VG)

These are safe to eat but not safe to breathe in. When heated, they can change into harmful gases. One very dangerous chemical found in some vapes is Vitamin E acetate, which can badly damage your lungs.

How Vaping Harms Young People

Vaping is especially harmful to young people because their brains are still developing.

• Nicotine affects attention, learning and memory.
• It lowers impulse control and may lead to mood issues later in life.
• Impulse control problems can show up as:
  • Sudden outbursts
  • Compulsive eating
  • Internet or gaming addiction

Youth who try vaping are also more likely to smoke cigarettes in the future. Studies show they are:

• 2 times more likely to start smoking if they’ve vaped before
• 3 times more likely to become regular smokers compared to non-vapers

Why Vapes Are Not Safer Than Cigarettes

Some people think vapes are better than cigarettes, but that is not true. The World Health Organisation (WHO) says vapes are not safe.

Even short-term use of vapes can:

• Increase the risk of heart problems
• Harm your lungs

Long-term effects are still not fully known because vapes are new.

What Vaping Does to Your Lungs

Breathing in vape mist can cause lung injuries. In Singapore, there have been cases of collapsed lungs caused by vaping.

Even if a vape does not have nicotine, the mist itself can hurt your lungs.

Pregnant women, young adults and youths should never use vapes.

How Vaping Can Lead to Smoking

Vaping is often the first step to smoking. It gets your body used to nicotine and makes it easier to switch to cigarettes.

Studies in countries like the UK and US show that youths who try vaping -even if they've never smoked before - are much more likely to start smoking cigarettes later.

In fact, youths who vape are three times more likely to become cigarette smokeds than thos who don't vape.

Why Vapes Are Not Helpful for Quitting Smoking

Vaping is illegal in Singapore, even if some people say it helped them quit smoking.

A Singapore-based survey showed that most smokers who tried vaping said that their key motivation to vape was to quit or cut down on smoking. However, few actually did. Nearly 90% of them ended up as dual users, which can be worse for their health.

Among recent quitters who vaped daily, nearly 60% returned to smoking cigarette withing two years of their quite attempt.

These findings suggest that vaping is not an effective tool for quitting smoking. It may actually make quitting harder and reate additional health risks.

Tip: In Singapore, you can use approved methods like nicotine patches, gum, lozenges, and counselling to quit smoking safely.