A new trend is emerging in college and high school courses and even on TikTok: the “Puff”. An electronic cigarette, candy taste, very inexpensive and which quickly becomes addict. Decryption.
Teenagers now swear by it: the “Puff”, L’colorful and recyclable e-cigarette, to the good candy taste artificial and minimalist design. In school classes, or on TikTok, for the past few months, she has been everywhere. Young people strut around with it and vape at will. It must also be said that its price is more than attractive for them, barely ten euros. In a few clicks, it can be easily purchased on the Internet or in a tobacco shop, even if they are, at the level of the law, strictly prohibited for minors.
Inside, each e-cigarette contains approximately 600 puffs, or two packs of cigarettes. Knowing that today the price of a single package amounts to more than ten euros. Teenagers are therefore more than winners. The different tastes too, very sweet, play a big part in the balance. Strawberry ice cream, mango, red fruits, hazelnut chocolate flavor or coconut pineapple… Everything seems to have been thought out to seduce the younger generation. “Yeah it’s too good, we buy it all the time, it’s better than cigarettes”, says a teenager after high school to our colleagues at Parisian.
Read also: Vaping would have harmful consequences on sexuality, according to a study
A quick addiction
But behind these vapes and these fragrant fumes, hides a not insignificant problem, that of addiction. It affects more and more teenagers, who are very young. “It’s not so much a teenager thing anymore, it’s a phew preteen thing. I found one in my sister’s room, she’s in 4th grade and she’s 13”, explains another high school student to the media.
“And that’s where it started to pose a problem for us in terms of ethics. It was very focused on the recreational aspect. We were no longer in smoking cessation at all”, confides the manager of a Vapostore. These “Puffs” are very addictive, due to their nicotine dosage and their ease of smoking. The nicotine content is estimated at between 0.9% or 1.7%, although some models also exist at 0%. For Loïc Josseran, president of the Alliance Against Tobacco, interviewed by Le Parisien, “it’s a real trap” !
A simple fashion effect? Nothing is less sure. Especially since several studies, of which the report of the American Academies of Sciences and Medicine published in 2018, point to the fact that electronic cigarettes would be a determinant of entry into smoking among young people.
Call for testimony: if your child or a teenager you know uses this e-cigarette, we would like to hear your testimony for a future article. Write to us at [email protected].