Teenagers are vaping ‘at a much higher rate than adults’, WHO data reveals
Health warning issued as ‘alarming’ vaping figures revealed
- The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates 100 million people vape globally, including nearly 15 million children aged 13 to 15.
- Vaping rates among 13 to 15-year-olds are, on average, nine times higher than among adults, with 7.2 per cent of teenagers using e-cigarettes compared to 1.9 per cent of adults.
- The WHO warns that e-cigarettes are "hooking kids on nicotine earlier" and risk undermining decades of progress in tobacco control, despite being marketed as harm reduction.
- The report highlights that the vaping industry aggressively targets children and young people, particularly through underregulated digital channels.
- While global tobacco use has decreased, the WHO urges governments to implement stronger tobacco control policies to counter the industry's promotion of new nicotine products, with the UK's Tobacco and Vapes Bill aiming to regulate this.