Vaping is far safer than smoking and it is frankly ludicrous to compare the two: there are countless, peer reviewed, academic studies that irrefutably demonstrate that passive smoking is very bad for children’s health and well-being.
Whereas, no such evidence exists for vaping, with much of the evidence suggesting that second hand vaping is barely different to normal air. The current NHS advice on the subject clearly states that “any risk from passive vaping to bystanders is small relative to tobacco cigarettes.” Check out this link for further information.
The health argument against vaping in front of children
The fact that vaping is much better than smoking, still doesn’t give us vapers licence to vape around children. One of the things that has always been a source of great personal pride about the vaping community and particularly established vaping brands like ecigwizard.com, is the sense of social responsibility. We have always been willing to listen to scientific evidence and never tried to force our lifestyles choices on other people. Our community has always been very different to that of smokers, which ‘Big Tobacco’ gave a poisonous sense of self-entitlement to, a long time ago.
Children’s health is very precious and the modern world of big cities and polluted air puts a lot of pressure on it. As responsible adults, we should do everything we can to ensure that nothing we do, contributes to this in any way.
Science is just our best description of the world at the moment and it is subject to change at any time: it is unlikely that vaping has any effect on children’s health, but it is not certain. So, despite all the scientific and medical evidence being to the contrary, it is simply not worth the risk of being wrong: we shouldn’t vape close to children based on that small chance that it might damage their health.
The psychological argument against vaping in front of children
The second reason is that as adults we are role models and our actions define what kinds of behaviour our children find acceptable. Vaping is perfectly fine for us adults as we have the ability to make informed choices based on the information available to us. Children, on the other hand do not, and there is a wealth of scientific evidence that suggests the children of parents who smoke are far more likely to develop the habit themselves.
The same is true for siblings, with the risk that a brother or sister smokes increasing 6-fold for those who already have a smoking sibling. This was most recently demonstrated by a study by the University of Purdue, the link to which you can find here.
Children’s minds are still developing and the habits they form when they are young will last them for the rest of their lives. We have to be mindful of this fact as a vaping community and try to expose them to it as little as possible. Thankfully, this isn’t very difficult and it is easy to step outside or into another room, when enjoying your electronic cigarette. Why not make it your special five minutes to be alone and get away from the chaos of family life?
Why we should vape in the right places
Vaping is undoubtedly a lot better for you and the people around you than smoking is, but that doesn’t mean that it’s without risk. As responsible members of the vaping community, we have to recognise this and make sure that we vape in the right places. This makes the vaping community and the wider world a happier and safer place.
For a more detailed look at the risks surrounding vaping, check out the most recent government investigation into the subject. You will be pleasantly surprised, by how few risks there are, but that doesn’t diminish our responsibility: to vape in the safest, most socially responsible way possible.
