Mental fog: children who start vaporizing before the age of 14 are more likely to struggle against concentration, memory and decision making.
- Studies show a link between vaporization and mental fog in adults and children
- Symptoms include difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions
- Those who acquire the habit before the age of 14 are at greater risk
- Suggests that vaporization should not be considered a safe alternative to smoking
Vaping can be just as damaging to young people’s brains as smoking, according to new research.
Both teenagers and adults who use electronic cigarettes are more likely to have trouble concentrating, remembering or making decisions, American scientists say.
However, the risk of mental “cloudiness” increases even more for those who acquire the habit before the age of 14.
“Our studies add to the evidence that vaporization should not be considered a safe alternative to smoking,” said study author Professor Dongmei Li of the University of Rochester in New York.
Both teenagers and adults who use electronic cigarettes are more likely to have trouble concentrating, remembering or making decisions (stock)
The analysis of more than 900,000 people in the United States is the first to investigate a link that had previously been suggested during animal experiments.
He showed that those who smoke and steam are the most likely – followed by those who smoke one or the other.
Mental function problems were significantly greater among these groups than their non-vapor and non-smoking peers.
In addition, children who started vaporizing between the ages of eight and 13 were even more vulnerable than those who started at 14 or older.
Mental function problems were found to be significantly greater among people who smoke or smoke than their colleagues who do not smoke and do not smoke
“With the recent rise in teen vapors, this is very worrying and suggests that we need to intervene even earlier,” said Professor Li.
‘Prevention programs that start in elementary or high school may actually be too late.’
Nicotine has been dubbed a “brain poison” for young people.
Adolescence is a critical period for brain development, especially for higher-order mental functions, such as attention, learning and memory.
This means that children and adolescents may be more susceptible to nicotine-induced brain changes, explained Prof Li.
Electronic cigarettes provide as much or more nicotine than cigarettes, despite the lack of many other dangerous compounds found in tobacco, she said.
Flavors like mango, mint, strawberry and vanilla mask its rough taste.
It is known to alter the activity of neurons in key regions of gray matter that will mature until the mid-20s.
Prof Li’s team collected data on more than 18,000 participants in the National Youth Tobacco Survey and more than 886,000 adults in the telephone survey by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
Both were asked about smoking and vaporizing habits, as well as issues of memory, attention and mental function.
An association between vaporization and mental function has been clearly identified – although what comes first is less obvious.
It is possible that exposure to nicotine through vaporization causes difficulties in mental function, said Prof Li.
On the other hand, people who report ‘mental fog’ may simply be more likely to smoke or vaporize – possibly self-medicating.
Professor Li and his colleagues say that more studies that follow children and adults over time are needed to get to the bottom of ’cause and effect’.
Previous research has shown that changes in the brain induced by nicotine during adolescence can be permanent.
Its damage can lead to long-term effects on the ability to make decisions and can also increase the risk of dependence on other substances.
Last year, a study found that vaporization damages the heart, lungs and blood vessels – including those that supply the brain.
The latest findings were published in Tobacco Induced Diseases and PLOS One.