What Is Juuling — And Why Are Teens So Tempted By It?
Parents, watch out for your kids.
getty At the end of last year, I was meeting with Lindsey, a 14-year-old high school student who shared that her friends were "juuling" in the bathroom in school.
What is juuling? I had never heard of that term so I asked her to explain to me what that meant.
Lindsey said that it was a form of vaping which was getting really popular because the vaping device was even smaller and more discreet than other vaping devices like e-cigarettes.
She shared that it is odorless and therefore very easy to get away with. She told me sometimes there is nicotine inside and sometimes marijuana.
Hmmm...I thought to myself that I wanted to look into this more after our session.
So, at the end of a long day, I Googled it. And then the next day, I reached out to colleagues about it. There wasn't a ton yet on this but enough that I understood that every parent with a kid ages 10 and up needs to know about it and learn how to talk to kids about vaping.
The term is "juling" but the brand name is "Juul" so kids will often write or text about it either way.
Look at this picture! It looks like a USB device and it comes with tiny cartridges (or pods) that are colored, flavored and contain either nicotine or marijuana.
You need to know about this for a couple of reasons:
1. Use of e-cigarettes is only increasing among teens.
These vapes are typically battery operated, or in this case, charged by a laptop, so that the vaping substance can be heated into vapor for inhaling. The cartridges can be easily switched out so that you can vape nicotine and then marijuana all in one sitting.
The thick smoke that results on the exhale is odorless or even pleasant smelling so that it is easier to get away with. The liquid that is used is referred to as e-liquid, and comes in flavors that can get users easily addicted as they taste good.
The worst part is that users describe it as "light on the lungs" so that they could easily puff on it all day long.
2. The Surgeon General has warned that vaping is a "major health concern."
The Centers for Disease Control warns that nearly 20 percent of adolescent kids have used e-cigarettes. Kids are walking around thinking that it is a safer alternative to cigarette use and smoking marijuana, however, it can still be addictive and the health strains that it puts on the lungs and the developing brain are being monitored.
Furthermore, the concentration of nicotine is significantly higher than found in cigarettes and are more likely to pause panic and anxiety attacks in users.
3. Struggling teens are likely to use it.
Juuling is yet another way that teens are pushing boundaries and showing that they may be struggling with issues that are being masked by nicotine use, drug use, or hanging with other high-risk kids.
I now encourage parents of middle school and high school-aged kids to talk openly about vaping, juuling, and other marijuana use — especially since marijuana has been legalized in some form in thirty states and that opens the debate to kids questioning how bad could this really be if it is legal.
Dr. Sheryl Ziegler is a mother, Doctor of Psychology, speaker, and author of the new book, Mommy Burnout: How Addressing Yours Will Make You A Better Mother And Create A Better Life For Your Children. You can follow her parenting advice in her newsletter by signing up today or visiting Mommy Burnout.
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