In my professional opinion, this is something that needs to be tackled and we will view vaping in generations to come similarly to how we now view smoking. We now know decades later just how bad smoking is for our overall health and more specifically our oral health, and how smoking has caused a huge rise in oral cancer and other diseases such as loss of teeth and severe gum disease, especially in our over-50 patients coming into the clinic.
I certainly believe that access to vapes should be restricted, and better education on the side effects of vapes on health needs to be prioritised, as we currently don’t have a lot of research or data to know just what the long-term effects of vaping will be on our health. Vaping still carries risks of all cancers and oral cell changes, including gum disease and risk of tooth loss.
So, the younger generation who are exposed to vapes need to be aware of these dangers and make educated decisions when it comes to their lifestyle choices.