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Health experts in Türkiye warn that electronic cigarettes, often marketed as fashionable and less harmful, are in fact a calculated move by the tobacco industry to draw in younger generations.
According to Associate Professor Hasan Volkan Kara, a member of the Turkish Green Crescent Scientific Committee and lecturer at Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa, these devices are being promoted through subtle advertising, social media channels, and peer influence, creating what he described as a “major assault on young people.”
Electronic cigarettes, known commonly as e-cigarettes or vapes, work by heating a liquid with a battery-powered coil to produce an inhalable vapor.
Kara explained that this vapor contains nicotine as well as numerous harmful substances, including polycyclic hydrocarbons and volatile metals.
These chemicals, he emphasized, are addictive and can damage brain development and multiple body systems in young users.
Kara underlined that the tobacco industry has developed e-cigarettes with over 16,000 flavors, as reported by the World Health Organization.
Sweet or fruity aromas, he noted, are designed to mislead teenagers and encourage them to try nicotine.
“This nicotine addiction, which begins with flavored products, often turns into conventional cigarette smoking. Some of these young users eventually become what we call multiple users, dependent on both e-cigarettes and regular tobacco,” he said.
The packaging of e-cigarettes also plays a role in attracting young consumers. Some devices feature digital numbers, apps, or even game-like designs.
Kara pointed out that this is a continuation of the industry’s longstanding strategy of appealing to feelings of uniqueness, status, and self-expression.
Beyond nicotine, e-cigarettes may contain tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis.
Kara stressed that this poses a risk of steering children and adolescents toward drug use under the guise of vaping. He also referred to documented cases of sudden respiratory failure, hospitalizations, and even fatalities linked to these products.
The liquids used in e-cigarettes include propylene glycol and vitamin E acetate—substances that might seem harmless when used as food additives. However, when inhaled into the lungs, Kara explained, they can trigger severe damage, including reactions resembling COVID-19 infections and life-threatening lung failure.
Kara urged young people and their families to remain cautious and avoid being deceived by claims that e-cigarettes help people quit smoking.
“If someone tells you that these products are effective in quitting cigarettes, know that it is not true,” he said.
“There is no scientific proof of such an effect. On the contrary, these devices keep people locked in the cycle of nicotine addiction by diversifying the ways they consume it.”
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