Teens don't realize they're vaping nicotine

An alarming number of young e-cigarette users don't realize just how much nicotine they're exposed to when vaping, a new study has shown.

Published on Monday in the journal Pediatrics, new research revealed that adolescents were getting a high amount of nicotine even when they thought the products they were using were nicotine-free. The study surveyed more than 500 adolescents, and then performed urine tests on 284 of those, and eventually found that about 40 percent of teens who thought they were using nicotine-free products still tested positive.

While e-cigarettes are thought by some to be healthier than traditional cigarettes, nicotine is no less addictive in a Juul than in a Marlboro. And in many cases, vapers were found to be taking in similar levels of nicotine in their e-cigarettes compared to traditional cigarettes.

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The addictive powers of nicotine are causing concern that the lack of awareness around e-cigarettes may lead to a "generation of addicted young people" who will vape for years to come, or even switch to more harmful traditional cigarettes, NBC News reported. "This may be a pathway into nicotine addiction" that nobody saw coming, explained Andrew Stokes, a professor of global health at Boston University.

Read more about this study's troubling conclusions at NBC News.