In high school, I never knew anyone who regularly smoked cigarettes. Of course there were the classic drunk smokers, but nobody was an “actual smoker,” especially in California where smoking usually refers to marijuana and not tobacco.

When I came to New York, I saw kids puffing away in between classes — whether it was morning, afternoon or night. Even now, in arctic temperatures, I see people outside in sub-zero weather because they are desperate for a smoke.

I am not trying to preach the risks of cigarette usage. This is the 21st century — everybody knows cigarettes can lead to cancer. Everybody also knows that tanning or standing in front of a microwave or even using a cell phone can lead to cancer.

Cancer, or even death, does not seem to be a major concern to today’s youth. Pictures of tarred lungs are not intimidating and neither are anti-tobacco campaigns. In fact, the glamorous and sexy image of smoking is still alive and well in many parts of the United States.

The New York Times cites shows like “Sex and the City” and “Mad Men” as ones that glamorize smoking. Young adults who are wealthy, well-educated and well-dressed are appearing onscreen and influencing not only today’s youth, but also today’s middle-aged population.

However, electronic cigarettes are becoming an alternative accepted by society. Cigarette usage is going down amongst U.S. teens but e-cigarette usage is on the rise, according to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This is because today’s youth is not necessarily addicted or drawn to tobacco, but instead to the sophisticated image that cigarettes still hold.

E-cigarettes are being promoted as a method of resisting actual cigarettes. The product does have the potential to help people quit, according to Forbes Magazine, but its contents are not regulated and long-term safety has not been determined. Also, they could prompt kids to start smoking or ex-smokers to continue smoking. E-cigarettes have reinvented the negative image of smoking that the Food and Drug Administration has worked so hard to build.

In fact, in the United States, e-cigarettes can be made with flavorful “e-juices.” A primary concern is that the tempting flavors will subconsciously draw teenagers into a nicotine habit that could eventually lead to a lifetime of smoking.

Contrary to popular belief, e-cigarettes are not completely harmless to bystanders. In fact, New Jersey has added e-cigarettes to its legislative ban on smoking in the workplace. This is due to the fact that e-cigarette vapor consists of concentrated nicotine, which, when exhaled, has similar effects to second-hand smoke.

The FDA discovered quality control issues with e-cigarettes in 2009. They found carcinogens and toxic chemicals in some and the presence of nicotine in products that claimed to be nicotine-free, according to a Huffington Post article published in January.

The main issue is that the FDA currently does not regulate e-cigarettes, so nobody is being held responsible for what is in the products or the effect e-cigarettes will have on non-smokers. This is where the uproar and debate over e-cigarettes come from.

Ex-smokers have found e-cigarettes helpful and beneficial while on the road to recovery. E-cigarettes have the potential to save lives, of course. Unlike traditional cigarettes, they do not involve combustion, which has been labeled as the real danger of smoking.

But that said, e-cigarettes were intended as a way to aid smokers on their way to quit — not as a status symbol for high school students trying to channel their inner Kurt Cobain. Although smoking in general is detrimental to the human body, I am a firm believer in letting everyone pick their own poison, but vaping from an e-cigarette just to pull off a hipster image is plain pointless.

Meg Zukin is a freshman television, radio and film major. Her column appears every Wednesday in Pulp. Email her at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter at @MargaretTZukin.

Published on February 4, 2014 at 11:17 pm