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Robert Perpepaj, of Lyndhurst, NJ, tries out and compares different flavors of electronic cigarettes in this July, 2013 file photo. (Aristide Economopoulos | The Star-Ledger.)

People are going to smoke. It's been done for centuries.

Now comes along an alternative, and it appears to be changing the way people -- at least young people -- take up the habit.

The 2014 Monitoring the Future survey, released Tuesday by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, found that smoking cigarettes within the past month was down to 8 percent among the 40,000-50,000 eighth, 10th and 12th graders surveyed nationwide.

In 1997, the recent peak year, 28 percent of that group reported having smoked.

The smoking rates among the three groups are at historic lows, according to the survey.

Meanwhile, e-cigarette use is rising. The institute’s survey showed that 9 percent of eighth-graders reported using the battery-operated vaporizers in the past 30 days, compared to 4 percent who smoked a tobacco cigarette. For 10th graders, e-cigarette use topped tobacco use 16 percent to 7 percent. Among 12th graders, e-cigarettes led tobacco 17 percent to 14 percent.

Those figures may be conservative. Two recent studies of high school and middle school students in Connecticut and Hawaii showed much higher use of e-cigarettes. In particular, the Hawaiian students showed that 29 percent of high school students surveyed reported having smoked e-cigarettes in 2013, said the study published online in the journal Pediatrics.

Supporters say e-cigarettes are a safer alternative than tobacco. Opponents say they're a gateway to tobacco and potentially other substances.

What's your view? Are e-cigarettes an acceptable alternative for people who smoke? Or are they just another opening to a dangerous habit? Take the poll and leave your thoughts in the comments section.

Tim Darragh may be reached at tdarragh@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @timdarragh. Find NJ.com on Facebook.