Newsletter - December 2018

E-Cigarettes

When it comes to cigarette smoking in the United States, there is good news: Americans are smoking less. While that news is encouraging, the rate at which electronic cigarettes have appeared in the marketplace and are being purchased by teens and young adults is alarming.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports, "E-cigarettes are now the most commonly used form of tobacco among youth in the United States. Their easy availability, alluring advertisements, various e-liquids flavors and the belief that they're safer than cigarettes have helped make them appealing to this age group.”

The most popular e-cigarette today is Juul. "The Juul is highly addictive due to its high nicotine content. One cartridge which is about 200 puffs has as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes, " said Michael Firouzian, DDS, FAGD, of Columbus, Ohio. And the effects of nicotine on a developing brain can be severe.

A 2016 study of the oral effects of e-cigarette use found that when non-smokers gum tissue was exposed to e-cigarette vapors, the burning vapors caused cells to release inflammatory proteins, which causes stress within cells, resulting in damage that can lead to oral diseases.

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