Dougherty, Terri. Vaping: Considering the Risks. Reference Point Press, 2023. 978-1-6782-0360-3 64 p. $33.05. Grades 7-12.

Dougherty delivers a solid, intense overview of the rise of e-cigarette use and its dangers to users. Although ostensibly begun as a smoking cessation tool for current smokers, vaping quickly made smoking socially acceptable and developed into a billion-dollar industry which increased rates of teen vaping to 25% in 2019. These rates have since decreased to 19.6% in 2020 and 11.3% in 2021, due to the effects of regulations, COVID, or under-reporting by teens. As the U.S. Surgeon General and the FDA responded to vaping’s popularity with warnings and regulations that limited sales to adults, then banned flavors, the industry only shifted to introduce one-use devices, then synthetic tobacco. Stricter regulations continue to be made as calls continue for long-term research on the effects of e-cigarette use, especially as compared to traditional tobacco use. This book makes the risks clear: addiction, damage to lungs, decreased dental health, cancer concerns and even social stigma. The book also gives insight on quitting vaping, with ample resources to support anyone’s efforts to do so. 

THOUGHTS: Considering the fast-paced changes occurring in the vaping industry and legislation, this book is a must-have. Libraries should update their vaping resources, seeking publication dates of 2022 or later to adequately convey the legal and societal changes.     

362.29 Vaping