“E-cigarettes have the same physiological effects on the brain and may pose the same risk of addiction to other drugs as regular cigarettes, especially in adolescence during a critical period of brain development. We don’t yet know whether e-cigarettes will prove to be a gateway to the use of conventional cigarettes and illicit drugs, but that’s certainly a possibility. Nicotine clearly acts as a gateway drug on the brain, and this effect is likely to occur whether the exposure comes from smoking cigarettes, passive tobacco smoke, or e-cigarettes.”

http://newsroom.cumc.columbia.edu/blog/2014/09/03/e-cigarettes-may-promote-illicit-drug-use-addiction/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=e-cigarettes-may-promote-illicit-drug-use-addiction