Around 2.5 million young Americans use e-cigarettes, or vapes – a device that simulates tobacco smoking and contains addictive nicotine and flavored vapor.
But with growing evidence warning of the potential harms to lung and heart health, many will no doubt be looking for ways to quit.
Medics recommend traditional aids such as nicotine replacement patches, pills and gums, or psychological therapy.
But one TikTok health influencer thinks she has the answer – and it involves no medicine whatsoever.
According to UK-based wellness guru Nikki J. Owen, who has more than 20,000 followers on her channel, the key to kicking the habit is…sniffing strawberries.
In one video, which has attracted more than 6 million views, she demonstrates her unusual technique.
‘If you like strawberries,’ she says, ‘take a strawberry, breathe it in and then take three deep breaths with the strawberry near to your nose.’
Ms Owen then takes large inhalations with the fruit balancing below her nose.
‘It feels tantalizingly gorgeous!’ she adds.
But viewers commenting on the clip are not convinced by the method.
The clip, which has been seen more than 6 million times, attracted some skeptical comments
‘It ain’t the taste people are addicted to,’ one commentator pointed out, while another wrote: ‘so what do I have to have strawberries on me 24/7?’
‘Would really struggle getting out a strawberry from my pocket outside work every hour,’ another said.
Earlier this year, the biggest heart health charity in the US made headlines when it published a statement claiming that e-cigarettes could be as dangerous as smoking.
The influential American Heart Association warned that vape devices contain a cocktail of nicotine, thickeners, solvents, and flavors that likely pose the same severe risks to cardiovascular health, including raising blood pressure levels, as smoking cigarettes.
The AHA’s policy to discourage the use of e-cigarettes, once touted as viable smoking cessation products, was one of the strongest to come from an influential medical association in years.
Meanwhile, the Center for Disease Prevention (CDC) warns that e-cigarettes are harmful to anyone who has not smoked cigarettes before – and should only be used to help adult smokers who are not pregnant and looking to quit.
