According to the CDC, an estimated 14 percent of adults in the U.S. smoked cigarettes in 2017 compared to 15.5 percent in 2016 and 42.4 percent in 1965. 

Thirty-three percent of adults vape and use e-cigarettes, according to the BBC, to help them quit smoking and there are 41 million vapers globally.

Over the past few weeks, the dangers of e-cigarettes have become more apparent. The CDC announced that as of August 2019 there have been 193 potential cases of severe lung illness in 22 states. 

Vaping is most commonly associated with companies like JUUL that manufacture nicotine vape cartridges. JUUL has been manufacturing e-cigarettes without FDA approval for about two years until the recent development of pulmonary diseases. 

Following the rise of youth vaping and the six vape related deaths recorded in the past few months, the FDA has given JUUL and other vape companies 10 months to submit an application for FDA approval. 

It was only after the six recorded deaths that the administration kick-started making changes. And yet, to this day, people are still addicted, smoking cigarettes and vaping even though we have known about the health concerns for decades and still haven’t done much to regulate. 

Vapes are slowly turning into the new cigarette as they started off as a way to healthily take in nicotine. They were pitched as ways to stop smoking, yet one JUUL pod contains 20 cigarettes worth of nicotine.

In April 2018, a Truth Initiative study found that 63 percent of JUUL users between age 15 and 24 didn’t know the product contained nicotine. The majority of these young users thought they were just vaping flavoring, not nicotine.

Since there are legislative measures being taken when it comes to vaping, when will there be legislative change for those suffering from cigarettes?