MACON, Ga. — According to an FDA survey, about 1.6 million middle school and high school students say they've used e-cigarettes - or vapes - this year.
That's about 500,000 less than were reported in 2023. Levi Marsh - a student in Jones County - quit vaping last year. He says he was tired of the way it made him feel.
"I started doing it because my friends were doing it and it seemed cool," he said. "The flavors they tasted good and then I started doing it all the time."
Marsh says he wishes he had never picked up that vape, way back when he was in middle school. Marsh says his addiction became so bad that he would go to the school bathroom and vape whenever he got the opportunity.
“I didn’t know what to do so I just started hitting dab pens in the bathroom, every chance I got,” he says.
Marsh says he realized how bad it had gotten when he crashed three family vehicles. He realized he needed help, went into treatment and learned how to stop vaping.
Now, he's working to help others quit, as well. He's already helped his brother put down the e-cigarettes.
Jessica Wright is the manager of the Cloud 9 smoke and vape shop in Macon. She says she's seen parents come in and buy vapes for their teenage children.
She also says that many vape products are marketed to appeal to adolescents, which can be harmful because of the potential side effects.
“It puts a stunt on [growth]," she said. "They always told you growing up that cigarettes would stunt your growth. I don't see any difference in that, because they're both nicotine."
Elisha Tribble is an assistant nursing professor at Middle Georgia State. She says some children have already started vaping by the age of 9.
She says online platforms have encouraged many children to begin vaping at a young age.
“It’s social media, and a lot of these kids are on social media and there are social media influencers that are paid to advertise these sort of projects,” she says.
Tribble says the best way to prevent adolescent vaping is through education. She says if children learn about the negative effects vapes can have, then kids would be less eager to start vaping.