According to the two new studies carried out by the researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) vaping is directly associated with mental fog.

The study, published in the journals Tobacco Induced Diseases and Plos One, stated that both adults and kids who vape are more likely to report difficulty in concentrating, remembering, or making decisions than their non-vaping, non-smoking peers.

The study noted that kids who start vaping during their early teenage years are more likely to experience brain fog.

The study led by Dongmei Li, Ph.D., associate professor in the Clinical and Translational Science Institute at URMC, mined data from two major national surveys.

“Our studies add to growing evidence that vaping should not be considered a safe alternative to tobacco smoking,” said study author Li.

Also read: 19 genetic variants of Covid-19 that can dodge antibodies found in India: Study

For the study, the team examined over 18,000 middle and high school student responses to the National Youth Tobacco Survey and over 8,86,000 responses to the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System phone survey from US adults.

Both surveys asked similar questions about smoking and vaping habits as well as issues with memory, attention and mental function.

Both studies show that people who smoke and vape — regardless of age — are most likely to struggle with cognitive disorder.

Also read: Covid-19 vaccine confidence remains below 50% in any country: WEF Survey

“With the recent rise in teen vaping, this is very concerning and suggests that we need to intervene even earlier. Prevention programs that start in middle or high school might actually be too late,” Li added.

Li and her team say that further studies that follow kids and adults over time are needed to parse the cause and effect of vaping and mental fog.