Sneaking a cigarette in the school bathroom? How quaint. Today's teens have taken to vaping, an alternative to smoking that's so discreet they can do it without even leaving the classroom. This, according to school officials across the United States, is a cause for concern for a number of reasons.
The devices heat liquid into an inhalable vapour that's sold in sugary flavours like mango and mint - and often with the addictive drug nicotine. They're marketed to smokers as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes, but officials say they're making their way into the hands of teens with surprising ease.
A new wave of smaller vapes have swept through schools in recent month, officials say, replacing bulkier e-cigarettes from the past.
"We've seen significant increase across the student body," said Robert Keuther, principal at Marshfield High School in Massachusetts. "This is not something specific to one group of kids. It's across all of my grades, nine to 12. It's all students."
Vaping devices are notoriously difficult to detect for schools, often leaving behind only a quick puff of vapour and a light fruity scent. Students get away with it in bathrooms, halls and even classrooms, where some say they exhale the vapour into their shirts. Unlike cigarettes, which leave a strong odour that doesn't go away easily, vaping devices don't leave much of a trace.
Although buying e-cigarettes is illegal under age 18 - and some states have bumped the minimum age to 21 - students say they can buy them online or from older friends.
The rise of teen vaping has raised concern among parents, politicians and federal health authorities, who announced a nationwide crackdown on underage sales of e-cigarettes on Tuesday.
The Food and Drug Administration issued a warning to retail stores as part of its new operation against illegal sales. It also requested marketing and design documents from the San Francisco maker of the Juul, a popular vape pod that is shaped like a flash drive. The agency says it's looking into whether certain features are particularly appealing to young people.
The device's maker says it's intended only for adults trying to quit smoking. Its website seeks to block underage customers, and the company says it supports legislation to raise the minimum age for vaping products to 21 nationwide.
