The Prevalence of Nicotine Usage in our Society: What is California doing about it?

One of the biggest issues in our society today is climate change. This is due to many factors, including the growing population of humans on our planet, which leads to the increased usage of fossil fuels. Additionally, lots of human activity contributes to this; for instance, smoking, and the usage of nicotine products releases harmful chemicals into the air, which further deepen the issue of climate change. When looking at tobacco and nicotine products by themselves, they pose another issue – not just to our environment, but individuals as well. The World Health Organization estimates that more than 8 million people die from tobacco use yearly. More than 7 million people of this population are smokers themselves, while 1.3 million were subjected to second-hand smoke, proving that one doesn’t have to be a user in order to be affected (1). Clearly, this issue is becoming more and more prevalent in our society, and if actions are not taken in order to combat it, both our environment and our individual populations will start to diminish.  

To start off, smoking has huge effects on individuals. The same chemicals that are released when using these products are the same that are entering the one’s body. These chemicals will cause smoke damage to many of your body’s internal systems. Besides the obvious health dangers when inhaling smoke and harmful chemicals, there is another added risk of contracting cancer, especially in the lungs (2). To add on, a user’s action not only affects themselves, but also others, in the form of secondhand smoke. This is especially prevalent in areas of the world that have higher smoking populations, and this can endanger every human being, no matter their age, ethnicity, or income. Additionally, there are the added effects of using nicotine products, such as vaping and e-cigarettes. While many claim that vaping is “less harmful” than smoking, it can still release harmful chemicals in the body, and have similar effects as mentioned above (3). In conclusion, there is no “better” way of smoking. Any usage of these products is harmful not only to an individual, but the general population as well. 

To continue, the effects do not end in the human body. There are many effects on our climate as well. As the Earth’s ecosystem continues to warm, climate change becomes more and more prevalent. Smoking and the usage of nicotine products is definitely creating more problems than solutions for this issue. For instance, cigarette butts are the most common type of litter according to the Ocean Care Organization. Because of their presence in our environment, they cause chemicals to be released into our ecosystems. To make things worse, they also don't biodegrade, meaning that they stay in our biospheres for an unknown amount of time (4). Additionally, this problem can also be caused by vapes. Because of the materials taken to make and distribute these products, there are much more single-use plastics in the world, which people dispose of once they are done being used. In turn, they cannot be recycled with other plastics, since they contain harmful chemicals such as nicotine, which can further damage our climate (5). Overall, no matter the form, nicotine usage, smoking, vapes, e-cigarettes, etc., can cause terrible damage to our ecosystems and further the issue of climate change on our planet.   

Like many issues, the smoking epidemic has changed to fit the current generation. Interestingly, studies show that the smoking rate among teenagers has decreased, and there is a perfect explanation for this phenomenon (6). For one, many laws have been put into place to limit the amount of cigarettes teenagers are allowed access to. In California, a law was put into place in 2016, which raised the minimum age permitted to buy tobacco to 21 years old. In short, there were many positives to this law; in the overall population, it was associated with a decrease in lifetime smokers (7). Despite this, other laws, such as Proposition 31, received many critics and were considered unsuccessful. Overall, while there were many advances made in terms of smoking, another issue becomes more prevalent, especially among teenagers and adolescents. 

The emergence and increased marketing of e-cigarettes and vapes, among others, have been known to target kids. These products are marketed with bright, attractive colors, and enticing flavors. Proposition 31, which was enacted in 2022, aimed to target this, and banned the sale of “e-cigarettes”. As a result, many illegally imported vapes were taken into custody, and many unethical companies were sued for not verifying the ages of their buyers. On the other hand, because these “cartridge-based” vapes were banned, children turned towards disposable vapes in order to consume nicotine. And in terms of California, many consider Prop. 31 a failure because its laws are not being strictly enforced. Additionally, nearby states do not have these restrictions, making it easier for youth to bring their products into California. Overall, these circumstances, combined with the fact that many children are not aware of the consequences of vaping, causes this everlasting issue in our society today (8).

To add another perspective, according to testimony given to Los Angeles Daily News, former El Monte police chief David Reynosa states that this problem wasn’t caused by the enactment of Proposition 31. He explains how many vapes that are bought by adolescents are manufactured in unsafe and unsanitary conditions. He further adds that while these are easily accessible to anyone on the market, kids are the most at risk as users. To add on, even despite the distribution of vapes to adolescents, many of these businesses are also unethical and don’t abide by business codes. Ultimately, Reynosa puts the responsibility of this problem on the lack of law enforcement (8).

As you can see, the usage of nicotine products is an increasing issue in our society today. By targeting adolescents, many of these companies are exploiting younger generations and further corrupting not only individuals, but our overall environment. And while some steps have been taken to prevent this, such as Proposition 31, there is still much more that needs to be done in order to solve this issue.