Letters: Stop vaping - Choose life
A concerned Bahamian grandparent urges action against youth vaping, comparing it to the crack epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s.Summary
In a letter to the editor, Anthony Pratt of Nassau, Bahamas, writes as a concerned grandparent about the rise of youth vaping. He compares the current trend to the crack cocaine epidemic of the 1980s and 1990s that devastated Bahamian communities, warning that nicotine addiction is being normalized among young people before its full damage is understood. He notes that sweet-smelling vapes resembling highlighters contain high nicotine levels—one pod equaling a pack of cigarettes—and that children are becoming hooked quickly, showing anxiety, irritability, and difficulty concentrating in school. He cites health consequences such as lung damage and notes rising vaping rates in The Bahamas as cheap flavored vapes flood corner stores. Warning that nicotine harms developing brains into the mid-20s, he appeals to youth to choose life and breathe free, and calls on grandparents, parents, teachers, and pastors to talk to children with love and act early.
(Source：The Tribune)
