Over the past decade, “vaping,” has changed from an experimental alternative to cigarettes to a recreational activity among teens and their friends.

First created to provide a safer and cleaner way to smoke with a lower risk of cancer, e-cigarettes have  shattered expectations and moved on to become something more than just an alternative. But are people really aware of what the “e-cig” is, or do they truly believe it is just “harmless water vapor?”

The unfortunate truth is that vaping is still in the early stages of its development. E-Cigarettes have been around for only a fraction of the time as traditional cigarettes, and even then it took centuries to discover that smoking cigarettes was detrimental to one’s health. So this begs the question: what is vaping doing to our bodies that we are presently unaware of?

The good news is that e-cigarettes have a substantially less carcinogens than real cigarettes—although, to quote Mr. Merges, “everything in life is a trade off.”

What the sticker on the “e-liquid” bottle does not say is that the liquid actually contains double the amount of heavy metals than a real cigarette, which can be worse for more delicate lungs. Likewise, while the e-liquid solvents — which can include propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin— are generally recognized as safe, it is possible to ingest too much.

Putting these facts aside, it is still unclear what attracts teens across the country and at MHS to smoke the “water vapor cigarette, ” or why many e-cigarette users feel that vaping is a healthier and safer alternative to smoking.

“It’s better than actually smoking…it is safer than cigarettes,” an anonymous e-cigarette user, and student at Massapequa High School, said.

Indeed, widespread knowledge of the dangers of traditional smoking may be a contributing factor to why students look to vaping as an alternative. 480,000 deaths in the United States per year are attributable to smoking, 130,000 of which are due to lung cancer most probably developed from the numerous carcinogens found in a real cigarette, according to Refinery29.

In contrast, non-users seem to be indifferent on the subject of vaping.

“Like many other things, it has its pros, and it has its cons,” junior Mark Fedoronko said.

Others felt similarly. “If it’s safer than actually smoking, I say go for it,” junior Mike Pevsner said.

But still the question remains, what attracts teenagers to vaping in the first place?

“It’s not the fact that it’s more healthy that makes teens use it, it’s just for fun. Teens don’t usually care about their health,” an anonymous student at MHS said.

According to The New York Times, teens try vaping because “there is a harshness to cigarettes.” The negative connotation associated with cigarettes turns off teens to smoking, leading them to experiment with other activities, such as vaping, the seemingly “less gross” option.

What used to be a cool, gritty, and tough-looking habit turned into something frowned upon by most teens today. In today’s schools, the leather jacket wearing, cigarette smoking, John Travolta’s chills won’t be multiplying. Rather, he would be looked at as a “kid who no one wants to be associated with,” according to The Stir. In today’s society, vaping is perhaps more acceptable by teenagers than smoking, even though teens who smoke often do still exist.

Regardless of how one feels about vaping, the facts remain that history repeats itself. As more begins to surface about the possible dangers of vaping, perhaps e-cigarettes will be replaced with a new and innovative alternative, similar to what happened with traditional cigarettes once vape pens emerged on the market. Hopefully the next big thing will be less destructive to the user’s health than the current alternative.