The New Aesthetic Vapes

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Mechanical engineer sophomore Joshua Peternel

Photo by Analyn Do

The New Aesthetic Vapes are becoming

By D’Netrus Chevis-Rose Staff Writer

The cigarette has been depicted in American media since the 1920s, seen as a statement of power, sociability and luxury. Today, the disposable vape is America’s next big thing. The vape or “nic stick” is what all of the cool kids are holding tight between their fingers as a daily necessity. As zoomers and millennials fight to stay up to date with the latest vape- these non-recyclable devices are being thrown away everyday, contributing to the United States’ mass issue of consumerism.

Vapes are made by a number of different electronic cigarette brands such as Puff Bar, Geek Bar and Flum, which manufacture different sizes, shapes, colors and flavors to buy. Vaping devices appeal to users with their high doses of nicotine, which give a euphoric, cloudy, head high with each puff.

According to a 2020 article by PubMed Central, before the disposable vape became mainstream, 2007 is when the new electronic flavored aerosol cigarette was advertised as a safer alternative to quit smoking.

The aerosol mist in electronic cigarettes is where the term vape came from, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. Each puff from a vape produces ultra fine particles in the lungs, creating the illusion of water vapor once the particles are released into the air.

According to the American Lung Association website, vaping forms a number of different chemicals in the lungs after each puff. When the nicotine infused

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juice in a vaping device heats up, toxic cancerous chemicals like carcinogens, acrolein and cadmium metals are released into the lungs.

Besides the negative stigma that health organizations have formed around the vaping craze, most people are still unsure of what exactly makes vaping harmful.

“Nicotine devices, I think I can’t really say I’m against it, because i’m not sure what a lot of the repercussions are that come with it, but I don’t want to be actively for it because I know it’s negative,” San José State University alum Dean Urbanski said.

Cadmium metals in particular are what has deemed vapes as hazardous to the lungs as they are to the environment. According to a 2023 article by AP News, disposable vapes contain lithium and other metals which cannot be recycled. Most users do not keep up with their vape device consumption, as it is easy to lose control in the consumerism culture of vaping. Young zoomers and millennials are buying around 12 million disposable vapes per month, creating a nationwide issue of mass consumerism and environmental harm.

Since the mid to late 2010s vaping has grown to be appealing in the world of fashion and party culture. Between 2014 and 2016, advertisements for vaping exploded, with studies showing that 78% of high school and college students were exposed to at least one advertisement, according to PubMedCentral. Electronic cigarette companies switched gears towards promoting

Photo by Analyn Do