As I have embarked on my campaign to ban vaping products in Canada, or, at the very least, to ban the sale of flavoured tobacco vaping products, I have often been asked why I haven't sought to ban conventional cigarettes. The two main reasons I have given in response to this question are that: i) vaping products are designed and marketed in a manner that targets young people, and ii) vaping products are more addictive than conventional cigarettes. 

One of the factors related to my first reason (the design and marketing issue) is that people can essentially vape anywhere without being detected. Most adults don't need to worry about hiding their smoking or vaping habit, whereas most kids do. Kids will generally need to hide their vaping from parents, siblings, teachers, and school administrators. It has even been reported in the media that students are vaping in classes without teachers noticing. I have at times referenced this claim, and it has, at times, been challenged and even hotly debated. Well, let me settle this debate once and for all.

This weekend I was at a small gathering of friends. At one point, I noticed a fellow, who I've known for a number of years, with a vape inconspicuously tucked in his hand. It fit perfectly in his fist. I just happened to notice the edge of the vape barely visible by his thumb. At first, I thought he was just holding it, perhaps out of habit, but then I noticed him actually draw a puff. The entire process was very inconspicuous: it looked like he was simply raising his hand to his mouth, as if to cough or clear his throat. It made only a slight whisper of a sound, created no smell, and, more notably... it made no vapour! 

Without mentioning my petition, I inquired about my friend's vape device. I asked if it was a JUUL, and he said, "No... it's a STLTH." To my eye, they looked the same. My friend had the black model, which was unflavoured: just pure nicotine. We talked at length about vaping, especially about how it compared to smoking, and the parent admitted that he initially started vaping to quit smoking, but that he now vapes more often, and more regularly, than he ever smoked. He attributed this to the fact that he can vape anywhere, at any time, in any season. I asked him how he could draw on his vape device without making any vapour, and he said, "It's all about how much you draw on the device. It could make a lot of vapour if you draw hard enough, but it could leave essentially no residual vapour if you draw lightly." I saw this repeatedly as this fellow continued to vape throughout the night.

After having seen this with my own eyes, I think it's a very safe bet that plenty of kids are vaping both in their classes and in their bedrooms. I can now personally assure you that vaping can be done in a manner that is completely undetectable.