Dan Seddon
Young vapers have been issued a warning by scientific experts who found that puffing on e-cigarettes can lead to some severe issues down the road.
In the biggest study into youth vaping that's ever been conducted, analysts from both the University of York and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine recently scoured through close to 400 individual studies from across the globe in what's referred to as an 'umbrella review'.
Published in the Tobacco Control journal, their findings revealed how vapes act as 'gateway' products into full-on cigarette smoking, not to mention their health-jeopardising effects on the human body.
In a direct call to parents and governments, the experts involved in the study said that children who pick up a vape are three times more likely to become smokers in their later lives.
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The University of York's associate professor in health science, Dr. Su Golder, claimed that the strength of the evidence can no longer go unnoticed.
"The consistency in the evidence is striking," she noted. "Across multiple studies, young people who use e-cigarettes are more likely to smoke in the future. These findings support stronger public health measures to protect teens from the risks associated with vaping."
Co-author Dr. Greg Hartwell of the LSHTM went on to add: "We found consistent evidence around transitions to smoking which of course, in turn, opens the door to the multitude of harms that conventional cigarettes bring.
"As the UK Government's chief medical officer states, marketing vapes to children is always unacceptable, and our review shows exactly why further restrictions on the tobacco industry, who control the vaping market, are so important."
The data also displayed an increased risk in asthma development and asthma attacks, as well as higher rates of bronchitis and pneumonia.
Teenagers complained of dizziness, migraines and headaches, while researchers found evidence of lowered sperm counts in males and even links to anxiety and suicidal ideation.
Vapes, which are sold in a whole universe of flavours, can also lead to alcohol misuse in the future, with many youngsters taking up cannabis too.
Senior author of the study Dr. Rebecca Glover wanted policymakers to have a long look at themselves in the mirror in light of these research results.
"Vaping is having a detrimental impact on the health of young people globally and vaping appears to be a gateway to other substances," she shared.
"Our study provides the strongest evidence to date that young people globally face a serious range of physical and psychological harms from vaping and are at higher risk of transitioning to smoking."
Worrying figures totted up by the NHS confirmed that 10 per cent of kids aged between 11 and 15 are now regular vapers.
Such is the epidemic nature of this problem, the NHS opened its first clinic designed to help vape-hooked youngsters quit in Alder Hey Children's Hospital.
British teachers say vape confiscations are at an unstoppable rise right now, with one hospital trust claiming that almost 17 per cent of the seized smokeable cylinders were spiked with Spice.