Electronic cigarette use is on the rise among teenagers nationwide, but is it really better than a regular cigarette?
According to a new federal survey, 17 percent of high school seniors used an e-cigarette in the past month, compared to 14 percent who smoked a traditional one.
News 12 spoke with Bronx Dr. Richard Stumacher, from Saint Barnabas Hospital, who says the problem is that not enough is known yet about the long-term effects of e-cigarettes. He warns they are addictive and potentially harmful for brain development because they're made of liquid nicotine.
The FDA recently upped the legal age to buy e-cigarettes to 18 years old in New York, but most health experts are pushing for even more regulation until more is known about them.