Is Vaping Going to Be Banned? Say Goodbye to Flavored E-Cigs

Smoking cigarettes is mostly a thing of the past, while vaping is becoming more popular than ever. 

Vaping has been deemed a "healthier" alternative to smoking cigarettes, but in the last few months, that assumption has been proven to be false. Those who use them — who are predominantly millennials (and even younger!) — have become seriously ill from chain smoking from e-cigs and vape pens.

So if you're wondering if vaping is going to be banned, here's what you need to know.

For those of you who have been living under a literal boulder, let me bring you up to speed. The definition of vaping, according to Merriam Webster, is: "to inhale vapor through the mouth from a usually battery-operated electronic device," which refers to an e-cigarette. Essentially, it heats up tobacco, and converts it into a vapor.

If you've seen someone smoking something that looks vaguely similar to a flash drive, it's a vape pen... and using it may be quite dangerous.

Like I said, vape pens are often used for smoking tobacco. You still inhale nicotine, but since it's vapor — as opposed to smoke — it's marketed as "better-for-you."

The cartridges often emulate "fun" flavors like cotton candy and mango, which many believe makes it more marketable to kids. Hundreds of people have gotten sick in the last year, with a large percentage being teens and kids, per Live Science. And that's why the Trump administration plans to ban flavored e-cigarettes for the time being. 

According to CNBC, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently in the process of removing all "fun" e-cig flavors, including fruity flavors to mintier ones, and even menthol. This will reportedly happen within the next 30 days.

And although this might change in the future, companies will have to submit a formal application, to get ~official~ FDA approval. So, you may want to kiss your fave flaves goodbye.

While you may not inhale smoke from that joint, bong, or pipe when using a dab pen, you may want to think twice before doing so. PerTime, vaping THC may also be contributing to the lung disease epidemic. 

It's widely believed that marijuana is less detrimental to lungs than tobacco. But regardless of how you smoke it, you're still inhaling carcinogens upon heating it. Also, vaping is much more discreet, which leads to users doing it more frequently.

As I said, many fatalities and illnesses have come about from vaping. Chance Ammirata, for example, is an 18-year-old who suffered from a collapsed lung. Maddie Nelson of Nelphi, Utah is another victim — she ended up in the ICU for four days after several years of vaping. 

But the health problems extend outside the body. Earlier this year, a vape exploded in 17-year-old Austin's mouth, breaking his jaw and several teeth. YIKES.

I'm no health teacher or doctor, but it sounds like vaping is — well — maybe not the greatest habit in regards to maintaining lung health. Either way, though, all the "fun" e-cig flavors are about to be banned for the foreseeable future. 

I'll miss turning down a block and getting hit with random bubble gum-scented clouds, but alas, all mediocre things must eventually come to an end, I suppose.