A Triton sophomore takes a long rip from their e-cigarette. “There really is nothing like a fresh mint pod,” they smile to themself. “Well, maybe not being addicted to nicotine would be better, but you get the picture

“The best days to go are Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. Those are the days Ricky’s working. He never cards,” says a Triton sophomore. “Never go Tuesday or Thursday, that’s the day Marsha’s working. She went to Triton, so she knows a lot of faces,” (names have been changed to protect privacy.)

The sophomore reveals their device. It’s a JUUL, the most commonly distributed vape or e-cigarette on the market right now. The JUUL can be sold in a starter pack including four pods, the JUUL device and JUUL charger for $49.99, or one can purchase the device kit including the JUUL and charger for $34.99. Each cartridge or ‘pod’ has approximately 200 puffs, with the same nicotine count as a pack of cigarettes. Most cigarette packs sell anywhere from $8.99 or $12.99. One would think that the JUUL is the cheaper option, and maybe it would be if they weren’t so easy to conceal.

“That’s the beauty of it, no one can tell if I had been ripping my JUUL,” says the Triton sophomore. “There’s no telltale signs and it never leaves a smell.”

The days of smoking under the bleachers are over. The JUUL has a sleek build, similar to that of a flash drive. Despite the fact they do sell for cheaper, kids are able to use their JUULs all day without the fear of getting caught by their teachers, parents, or anyone else. Due to the accessibility of the nicotine, kids are inclined to use it more, leading to stronger addictions.

    “I probably go through a pod every two or three days,” says the same Triton sophomore. “That’s not half-bad compared to my friends. I know people who go through two or three pods a day. Over the summer, during Yankee [Homecoming], I had met a kid who went through five pods in one day. That’s an entire pack of pods and more…”

    Well, according to CDC.gov, the average adult smoker goes through two packs of cigarettes a week. By that logic, the kid that went through five pods daily was most likely highly addicted. If they used five pods daily, the kid would go through 35 packs of cigarettes a week. They would spend over $14.99 every day, too.

    “It’s not the money thing that bothers me,” the Triton sophomore says. “I’m okay spending my money on pods. I still have enough money to get through my week and add to my bank account. Besides, I like the way my JUUL makes me feel, it’s worth the money…. JUUL at the end of the day, is still the healthiest way to consume nicotine.”

    The Triton sophomore may have a point here; according to ASAPScience, “For now, science says that JUULing is healthier than smoking…. The popularity of JUULing amongst young people means fewer are smoking cigarettes, which some epidemiologists think is a good thing.” The technology and five ingredients of the JUUL were designed to keep out all the carcinogens and cancer-causing chemicals of a cigarette while delivering rapid nicotine delivery.

    With all that being said though, JUUL still hasn’t proven to be completelty harmless. Scientists are still looking into and researching the long-term effects that JUUL and other vaping devices have on the human body. It has been revealed that some vape companies use the ingredient dieacytal for flavoring, a dangerous chemical causing lung inflamation but JUUL makes a point not to use this chemical.

Still, JUUL is made with other harmful chemicals, such as Nitrosonornicotine. Either way, it is just common sense that until we know the long-term effects on vaping, it’s probably best to stay away from nicotine devices altogether.

“It’s like, I’ve heard about the FDA investigating JUUL,” says the Triton sophomore. “I hear they want to ban JUUL, or whatever. My question is why? That’s not going to stop kids from being addicted. They get rid of JUULs, I guarantee all these kids including myself would go to cigarettes.”

The sophomore takes a final rip of their JUUL. “Banning JUUL isn’t the answer. I couldn’t tell you what is. I just know that’s gonna make everything worse. But if I had to give you an answer, to deal with this nicotine epidemic, which is less of a health one and more of a financial problem, I’d say ban cigarettes first. And then, maybe, instead of punishing kids for their physical addiction, maybe try to nurture them and tell them it is possible to quit. There are kids you’d never expect to be addicted who are. I get it’s illegal, but we’re teens. We’re minors. Charging us a $100 fine isn’t going to help anybody, and I know that’s beyond the school’s control but still. These adults say it’s a huge problem but don’t give a [care] about the kids who are already addicted. I say help them. Keep JUUL out of their hands, but don’t let underage users take the chance of quitting cigarettes away from adults.”