You might have already noticed them, the brightly coloured tubes no bigger than a packet of Polos that people everywhere are gripping.
Despite appearances, these aren’t sweets, but rather disposable vapes bought cheaply and packed full of sweet and accessible flavours.
Elf Bars, Geek Bars and Solo Bars are among some of the most popular brands out there and come in appealing flavours such as guava and kiwi, watermelon and blueberry ice.
The popularity of the devices has exploded. In January, online vape platform IndeJuice reported it had seen a 279% increase in its sales of disposable vapes in the final quarter of 2021 compared to the one before. Vapes including the flavourings of "fruit" and "ice" accounted for 60% of sales.
But what are these disposable vapes, heralded as a new and healthier alternative to smoking, and are they appealing to younger generations?
Are Elf Bars and disposable vapes safe?
Disposable vapes can often feel inconsequential; they're cheap, disposable and you don’t mind too much if you lose one. With light colours and fruity flavours, they don’t feel as though they could possibly do any harm.
Dr Gareth Nye, a lecturer and researcher at the University of Chester, disagrees with this.
“There is limited scientific evidence regarding these products, mainly [regarding] the liquid used to vape with rather than the vaping device itself as they have continued to change over the last ten years,” he said.
“Because e-cigarette liquid and smoke have been shown to contain nicotine and many of the same harmful toxicants and carcinogens as cigarettes, it is reasonable to assume that there is the potential for similar health effects for e-cigarette use which include long-term cardiovascular damage, lung damage and cancer and other metabolic changes."
While vapes and e-cigs don't contain the tar and carbon monoxide found in regular cigarettes, there are still concerns over the chemicals vapers are putting into their bodies.
“A 2018 study showed that e-cigarette users had concentrations of metals and volatile chemicals (toluene, benzene, and carbon disulfide) comparable with those of cigarette smokers,” said Dr Nye. “These are the chemicals causing the long-lasting lung damage
“Vaping has caused increases in tooth decay, dental and oral conditions and shows signs of being linked to oral cancers the same way cigarette smoking does.
“Bottom line - inhaling chemicals into the lungs which are not meant to be there leads to a reaction from your immune system which damages the lung tissue. With damaged lung tissue you can't get oxygen into the blood, as well making the heart work harder and the rest of the body goes into survival mode.
"The longer you do this the worse the impact. I wouldn't be surprised if we see a whole generation of 30-year-olds with lung conditions in the next decade.”
Are Elf Bars aimed at younger people?
Some people have even raised concerns that the products could encourage younger people to take up smoking.
Kieran Hynes, a former salesperson for tobacco industry giant British American Tobacco and vaper himself, said: “I think the huge array of fruity flavours creates mass appeal in the younger age groups.”
The statistics appear to agree. Dr Nye said: “A recent study has shown from January 2021 to January 2022, there was a 14-fold increase in the percentage of vapers that used disposables, rising from 1.2% to 16.7% - the percentage of 18-year-old vapers using disposables rose from 0.89% to 56.7%. So over half of reported vapers aged 18 are using these Elf Bars.
“Despite vapes generally being the better option than cigarettes, there is a worrying notion among young people that vapes and Elf Bars are 100% safe, which is simply not true,” said Dr Nye. “Even no nicotine versions are not safe.”
On TikTok, the #elfbar trend has just under 700 million views and is packed full of videos of young people ‘tooting’ on their bars and making light of their addiction.
But despite the Elf Bar website itself requiring users to declare they are 21 or over, it appears that the vapes are getting into the hands of younger generations.
In November 2021, the Daily Record reported that a primary school in Scotland had sent a message home to parents warning them that they had been getting into the hands of young people.
The text read: “There have been some reports of children finding used vapes and 'Elf Bars' laying around the local community however there may be other ways children are accessing these that we don't know about.”
