A new study presented at the international congress of the European Respiratory Society[1] in Barcelona revealed that the majority of teenagers (68%) who have tried an electronic cigarette at least once in Ireland, had never been smokers before. The study also indicated that young people with smoking parents are much more likely to smoke or vape.
The research was carried out by a team from the TobaccoFree Research Institute Ireland (TFRI), in Dublin. She looked at data for 6,216 young people aged 17 and 18, including information on whether their parents smoked as children. The researchers asked the teens if they smoked or used e-cigarettes. The team also analyzed data from national surveys of 10,000 Irish adolescents (aged 16-17), to examine e-cigarette prevalence and use among them.
Vaping, a gateway to nicotine rather than an exit
The proportion of Irish teenagers aged 16 and 17 who have tried electronic cigarettes at least once increased from 23% in 2014 to 39% in 2019. They were 32% who had tried conventional cigarettes at least once in 2019. Although boys are more likely to try or use e-cigarettes, researchers found that rates rose faster in girls. In July 2022, the organization Action on Smoking and Health (ASH UK) published the results of a study conducted annually among young people aged 11 to 17[2]. The organization was alerted to the increase in regular vaping among adolescents, which rose from 4% in 2020 to 7% in 2022.
The main reasons given by teenagers for taking up electronic cigarettes are curiosity (66%) and the fact that their friends are vaping (29%). Only 3% said it was to quit smoking. The proportion of those who said they had never used tobacco when they first tried e-cigarettes increased from 32% in 2015 to 68% in 2019.
TFRI Chief Executive Professor Luke Clancy explained: “We have seen an increasing use of electronic cigarettes among Irish teenagers and this is a trend that is emerging elsewhere in the world. It feels like vaping is a better alternative to smoking, but our research shows this doesn’t apply to teens who typically haven’t tried traditional cigarettes before e-cigarettes. This indicates that, for adolescents, vaping is a gateway to nicotine addiction, rather than a way out. »
Teens are more likely to smoke/vape if their parents smoke
Studies have long shown the correlation between parental smoking and the higher likelihood of children starting to smoke too.[3]. According to this Irish study, having parents who smoke is also a factor in initiating vaping. Teens whose parents smoked were about 55% more likely to try Electronic cigarettes and about 51% more likely to start smoking than other young people.
According to one of the researchers, Salome Sunday, ” The close environment, including parents and peers, friends influence adolescents’ decision to try different nicotine products and it is important to act on this subject because these are avoidable factors. She adds that governments also have a role to play by enacting protective legislation for children and young people with regard to all nicotine products. Proven tobacco control measures must be transposed to vaping products.
Keywords: Ireland, vaping, electronic cigarette, teenagers, addiction, nicotine, influence
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[1] Press release, Teenagers more likely to vape if their parents smoke, European lung foundation, published September 3, 2022, accessed September 6, 2022
[2] Fears of growth in children vaping disposables backed up by new national surveyASH UK, published July 7, 2022, accessed August 29, 2022.
[3] Smoking: Teenagers imitate their parentsSanté magazine, published on September 4, 2022, consulted on September 6, 2022
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