For those of you who do not know, a “hookah pen” or “vape pen” is essentially an electronic cigarette without tobacco, nicotine, or any of the other harmful products found more commonly in e-cigarettes or regular cigarettes. Unlike a typical cigarette, vape pens produce an aerosol mist that is often called vapor as it is essentially just water vapor. I myself have never smoked a hookah pen, or anything else for that matter, but I do have several friends who do use them.
Vape pens work the same way as an e-cigarette. There are a few different types, but the most popular kind is the one that most resembles an e-cigarette. There is a battery that heats the “wick” which is soaked in a “juice” that can contain nicotine depending on what you buy. If you unscrew the top you can pour the juice in so the cotton wick has absorbed and been coated in the juice. Then you would use it as you would any other smoking device. The juice that is poured in is a thick syrupy liquid which contains flavoring. Most juices can also be bought with or without nicotine depending on your preference.
Hookah pens have not been around long enough for much research to be done on the health aspects of these smoking devices. As of right now, they have the same age restrictions on them as regular tobacco products of 18 and over. Of course, just like cigarettes, it is easy enough for anyone under 18 to get one of these. Compared to a cigarette these vapor pens are far healthier to smoke as they can contain no nicotine and tobacco if requested, but it is the healthiest to just not smoke at all. There are still toxins found in these that would not be found in the regular air you breathe.
The most interesting thing I have found is that of almost everyone I know that smokes these, none of them smoke cigarettes as well. And of the handful of people I know who smoke these at least half of their parents know and are ok with them smoking them. When you think of that on a small scale you would assume their parents would not be ok with that, but on the large scale it does make sense that they are not overly bothered by this. Compared to all the other things they could be smoking this is by far the healthiest thing known to smoke.
All this being said I am not recommending you take up the habit of smoking vapor pens, but if you are someone who smokes cigarettes on a daily basis and want to stop, vapor pens are a great way to quit. Unlike e-cigarettes these can be bought without tobacco in them, and you can get decreasing amounts of nicotine. You can use these to wean yourself off nicotine, and if smoking has become a nervous habit of yours once you are off the nicotine, you can smoke ones with no nicotine in them.