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The lure begins

That’s when the lure begins. The cigarette, stolen from a parent’s drawer.

The clink of a hidden bottle passed between friends. It’s not the nicotine or the burn of alcohol that excites, but the defiance, the rebellion simmering beneath the surface. Psychologists call it risk-seeking behaviour, a quirk of the adolescent brain wired for exploration. The prefrontal cortex, responsible for judgment, is still under construction, while the reward system is hyperactive.

So the thrill isn’t just in the act, but in the not getting caught. The breath held as a car passes by, the wild laughter echoing in alleyways, the feeling that you’re outsmarting a world built by adults who forgot how it felt to burn for more. You know it’s wrong, in the clinical sense. But in that moment, it feels like claiming a tiny empire of your own, however fleeting. It’s rebellion disguised as autonomy, danger masked as freedom. And even as the guilt creeps in later, it’s hard to forget the taste of almost getting away with it. What begins as rebellion often carries shadows not visible in the gleam of thrill. Danger lurks everywhere. That first drag of a cigarette, so full of conceit, can quietly become a ritual, until the body begins to expect it, then demand it. The lungs tighten.

The heart races. The brain rewires itself, chasing the artificial high, confusing danger for reward. The drink that once felt like freedom dulls the edges until even joy needs a chemical push to be felt at all. A dangerous place to be. Psychologically, the risks are far more subtle. Repeated brushes with risk can numb fear, eroding judgment, and breeding a dangerous sense of invincibility. Adolescents are especially vulnerable, not just because their brains are still developing, but because their identities are still forming. Behaviours meant to feel temporary can solidify into patterns, dependencies masquerading as personality.

Confidence born from rebellion can quietly morph into anxiety when the consequences catch up: A dropped grade, a fractured relationship, a morning spent trying to remember what you said the night before. The real danger is not just the damage, but how easily it hides beneath the glamour of recklessness, beneath the illusion of control. It starts with wanting to feel alive. It can end with forgetting how to live without the risk. Temptation slides through every corner of modern life and is timed to strike when the human psyche is most fragile. In a world driven by profit, big business preys on vulnerability, blurring ethical lines until they vanish altogether. Nowhere is this more evident than in the tobacco industry, where glossy advertisements, equal parts seduction and deception, promise rugged freedom, camaraderie, and thrill. But beneath the smoke lies a far darker truth.

The dangers were first illuminated in 1950, when British researchers Doll and Hill shattered complacency with groundbreaking studies that linked cigarette smoking to lung cancer. It was a moment that forced the field of epidemiology to reckon with its complicity and the world to confront its habits. But corporations are shape-shifters. As the truth gained traction and cigarettes fell under public scrutiny, a new invention emerged; the electronic cigarette. Sleek, flavoured, and marketed as a safer alternative, it slipped into culture almost as seamlessly as its predecessor. Perhaps it does carry fewer risks, but how much safer is vaping, truly? Or is this just another evolution of the same old game: addiction dressed in modern skin, still whispering promises while quietly taking its toll? The world’s first controlled study on the long-term effects of vaping has begun to reveal its findings. Conducted by the Manchester Metropolitan University and set to conclude next month, the study has already uncovered concerning results. Dr Maxime Boidin explained that participants’ blood was tested for vessel elasticity and brain blood flow. Smokers and vapers showed similar outcomes; damaged artery walls and poor circulation.

Boidin theorises that nicotine, common to both cigarettes and vapes, is a key culprit. He also highlighted the presence of metals and chemicals like propylene glycol and vegetable glycerine in vapes.

Flavourings, he noted, may trigger inflammation and oxidative stress, further harming arterial walls. Collectively, this damage raises the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and dementia. Predictably, and almost laughably, Dr Marina Murphy, spokesperson for the UK Vaping Industry Association, dismissed the findings, insisting “millions” have used vaping products “safely” for “many years.” But while others inhale their cocktail of chemicals and cling to convenient truths, I’ll take my own high from something far more potent: stepping outside and breathing Botswana’s fresh, unpolluted air.