A Health Issue Brief discussing Vaping and Tobacco: “Vaping” is a practice that uses an electronic cigarette (sometimes called an e-cigarette or vape) to deliver nicotine through a battery-operated aerosol device. While traditional cigarette use has decreased through the efforts of prevention programs, the growing popularity of vaping and e-cigarettes is beginning to reverse declining rates of adolescent nicotine use and addiction. This resurgence of tobacco use is a public health concern, as nearly 80% of all smoking adults report having begun the habit in their teens.

Tobacco use has long been known to carry serious health risks, including lung and mouth cancers, chronic bronchitis and heart disease. In America, more than 16 million patients currently suffer from diseases caused from direct or indirect tobacco use.1 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that these illnesses contribute nearly $170 billion in direct medical care costs and more than $156 billion in lost productivity.2 The nicotine in tobacco is highly addictive, these addictive properties can be further increased by additives in tobacco smoke.