According to the 2012 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS), 20.8 percent of current teen tobacco users reported wanting to use tobacco within 30 minutes of waking—a prominent symptom of nicotine dependence. Still, many still say that it's not reliance but just a mere hobby. Even now, adolescents as young as 6th and 7th graders have given into societal norms and have started their nicotine journey – whether it be a vape or cigarette. Nicotine addiction has turned into a severe and prominent topic in today’s society. When presented the opportunity, social outings nowadays are sometimes only meant for smoking.
Nicotine, with its highly addictive chemicals, is extremely dangerous especially those of young age and has “effects on the brain’s reward system and brain regions involved in emotional and cognitive functions” (National Institute on Drug Abuse). Although vaping is less harmful than smoking, it still comes with similar chemicals and similar harmful effects that smoking has. An extremely common excuse for teenage nicotine addiction is the statement of not being addicted, but only lightly using it as a hobby or coping mechanism. However, Other studies have found that light and/or intermittent smoking among teenagers and kids can be associated with a similar degree of difficulty quitting as daily smoking. What also should be talked about is the fact of how mental health and emotional aspects of somebody’s life can influence smoking. The “buzz” and slight relief nicotine acquires from the brain can turn extremely addictive when mixed with emotional distress and mental instability. In addition, smoking among peers and seeing societal norms influences teenagers in smoking. As the article states, Nicotine can cause an “increase in blood pressure, heart rate, flow of blood to the heart and a narrowing of the arteries” (American Heart Association). It can cause heart and lung cancer, an increase in blood pressure (which can lead to heart attacks), heart diseases, leukemia, and many other detrimental effects on your body and mind. The chemicals in nicotine are also unimaginably dangerous to inhale. Some of these compounds that nicotine contains are 1,3-butadiene, which is used to create rubber, arsenic, which preserves wood, cadmium, which is used to produce batteries, and Polonium-21, which is a radioactive substance.
Inhaling thousands of chemicals because of vaping leads to decaying effects in the body. Not only your body, but nicotine affects the mind and how it operates. It affects brain development which makes it harder for your mind to function and concentrate properly. Even with all the risks and effects nicotine has and what most teenagers know about, the withdrawals of trying to quit nicotine make it seem impossible to quit. This is why so many teenagers are constantly addicted and can't seem to get enough of this toxic chemical. Feeling depressed, moody, having trouble concentrating, headaches, restlessness are just some prominent withdrawal symptoms. Although nicotine has destructive effects on the body and the mind, its highly addictive compound has proven to take over teenagers in today’s society. Teenage nicotine addiction has become more of an epidemic than just a problem.
Comentarios