What the The Real Cost TV commercial - My Vaping Mistake: Henry is about.
The Real Cost is a national public education campaign from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that focuses on preventing youth from using tobacco. To further this aim, The Real Cost has produced a TV spot called 'My Vaping Mistake: Henry.' The ad tells the story of a teenager named Henry, who started vaping as a harmless pastime but soon found the habit spiraling out of control.
The TV spot opens with Henry sitting alone in his room, confidently puffing away on his e-cigarette. As he exhales a cloud of vapor, the voiceover reveals that a single JUUL pod can contain as much nicotine as an entire pack of cigarettes. Henry is soon depicted vaping in various settings, including at a school dance and in the car with friends, who casually encourage him to take a hit.
Fast forward a few weeks, and the ad shows Henry struggling to breathe as he suffers from severe chest pains. He's eventually rushed to the hospital, where doctors diagnose him with a collapsed lung and warn him that he might need surgery.
As the TV spot concludes, the voiceover once again highlights the dangers of vaping, describing it as "a mistake that can cost you everything." The ad urges parents and teens alike to visit TheRealCost.gov to learn more about the risks of vaping and tobacco use.
Overall, the 'My Vaping Mistake: Henry' ad is an effective warning against the dangers of vaping. By depicting a relatable and likable teen protagonist who gets sucked into the habit of vaping, the ad makes a serious issue feel more personal and immediate. It's a sobering reminder that even something that seems harmless can quickly turn into a dangerous addiction.
The Real Cost TV commercial - My Vaping Mistake: Henry produced for
The Real Cost
was first shown on television on October 12, 2021.
Frequently Asked Questions about the real cost tv spot, 'my vaping mistake: henry'
FDA's award-winning public education campaign, “The Real Cost,” continues to prevent youth from starting and continuing to use tobacco products. The e-cigarette and cigarette prevention campaigns focus on educating youth about the negative health effects and risks of vaping and smoking.
The government-funded ad campaign is held to entirely different standards than the industry it relentlessly assaults. The vaping industry is effectively hamstrung by myriad legal bindings which prevent it from striking back or setting the record straight.
Findings. In this randomized clinical trial that included 1514 adolescents, Real Cost vaping prevention advertisements reduced susceptibility to vaping compared with control videos. Real Cost advertisements also reduced susceptibility to smoking cigarettes compared with control videos.
While cigarettes are the deadliest form of tobacco, no tobacco product is safe. Vape aerosol can contain some of the same chemicals found in cigarette smoke, including chromium, formaldehyde, lead, and nickel.
#DoTheVapeTalk is a youth vaping prevention campaign from the American Lung Association and the Ad Council to provide parents with a simple roadmap to address the dangers of vaping. The campaign offers free educational resources including a conversation guide on our website, TalkAboutVaping.org.
The campaign will target platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, Twitch and Spotify. The campaign will highlight the health effects of harmful chemicals and ingredients found in vapes, such as lead, arsenic, and formaldehyde.
“The Real Cost” is a website, developed by the Department of Health and Human Services, that provides youth with information about different types of tobacco products and the real health risks associated with their use.
1: Vaping is less harmful than smoking, but it's still not safe. E-cigarettes heat nicotine (extracted from tobacco), flavorings and other chemicals to create an aerosol that you inhale.
E-cigarettes still produce a number of dangerous chemicals including acetaldehyde, acrolein, and formaldehyde. As we've recently seen on the news, the inhalation of harmful chemicals can cause irreversible lung damage, lung diseases - and even death.
It's not just the ingredients. Aside from their ingredients, the materials e-cigarette devices are made from can end up in our bodies. Toxic metals and related substances such as arsenic, lead, chromium and nickel can be detected in both e-liquids and vapers' urine, saliva and blood.
The most common heating elements in vaping devices are made up of nickel (Ni)-plated brass like copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), nichrome (NiCr), and kanthal (Al-Cr-Fe), while other components of the atomizer primarily consist of lead, tin, and stainless steel.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the health risks young people are exposing themselves to by using electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes). E-cigarettes are not only addictive, but also contain or produce harmful chemicals and toxins that can cause some of the same serious health problems as smoking tobacco.
