E-Cigarette Concerns: Are Kids Using Them To Get High?

E-Cigarettes are a popular alternative to smoking traditional cigarettes, and while they have been growing in popularity, the concern surrounding them is also growing. One growing concern is the fact that teens are now using e-cigarettes to get high.

According to the Chicago Tribune, local high schools have begun conducting police investigations into student drug use. York High School Principal Diana Smith stated in a letter to parents that one of these investigations took place this month.

So what did they find? According to Smith, students are using e-cigarettes to consume THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

“The e-cigarettes, which are relatively new to us, allow the user to ingest without smell or smoke,” Smith wrote in the letter.

According to Fox News Insider, kids and teens are also using the vials of nicotine that come with e-cigarettes to get high. The report stated that teens have reportedly been drinking the nicotine on purpose in some instances, mixing it with energy drinks to get a “quick high”.

While e-cigarettes are supposed to be the healthier alternative to traditional cigarettes, the vials of nicotine can poison someone who ingests it.

“Nicotine is a very potent drug. It gets into your blood stream. It could increase your heart rate, it could give you changes in your blood pressure, it can even cause death,” said Dr. Manny Alvarez.

The use of these e-cigarettes and their components are becoming more frequent among the younger generation, and that has many worried. In the investigation at York High School, Dave Pruneau, superintendent of Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205, stated that five students, all freshmen, face the possibility of expulsion as a result of the investigation.

Elmhurst Police Chief Michael Ruth said that parents need to keep an eye on their children and teens. According to the Chicago Tribune, Ruth said that he doesn’t want parents who notice their children using e-cigarettes to think they are safer than traditional cigarettes. “Parents need to be aware that if they see e-cigarettes perhaps they are not the best thing for our youth to be using,” Ruth said.

This is, again, because of the fact that e-cigarettes are more frequently being used to ingest other drugs. Smith said that the use of e-cigarettes and any drugs is a violation of school policy.

“The use of e-cigarettes by minors is a violation of Illinois State Law,” she said. “Therefore possession of e-cigarettes or any tobacco or nicotine product or fluid by a student of any age at York is a violation of school policy.”

While the same is true for schools around the country, that hasn’t stopped students from using e-cigarettes and even misusing them. Do you think the regulations for the use of e-cigarettes need to be revisited and stricter rules put in place?

[Image via Shutterstock//librakv]