Written by Helena Ally
Recent data has raised concerns that e-cigarette companies are specifically targeting young people and children to maximize profits. The industry is luring this young market through colorful packaging and a wide variety of appealing flavors, feeding fears about a new generation of nicotine addicts.
A recent survey conducted by Smoking and Health Behavior found that 20.5% of children have tried e-cigarettes this year, an increase of around 5% from 2022, and the coronavirus lockdown. This is an increase of 6.6% compared to before.
Over the past three years, millions of illegal e-cigarettes have been seized under trading standards. Durham County Council recently seized over 300 illegal oversized e-cigarettes. Among the products seized was a pink, strawberry ice cream-flavored e-cigarette shaped like a milkshake bottle.
The children's design, which mimics children's toys, appears to be an attempt by the brand Twister Bar to appeal to young children. This is despite the vape tank size being 20ml, which is over 10 times his legal limit.
Governments should be expected to act by imposing regulations on e-cigarette companies
These findings are of great concern because the long-term effects and side effects of e-cigarettes remain largely unknown. However, studies have already linked e-cigarettes to a variety of serious health effects, from increased blood pressure to lung disease and effects on cognitive development.
Despite these findings, e-cigarettes are considered by medical experts to be far less harmful than smoking. Therefore, the functional role of e-cigarettes as a tool for people who ultimately want to quit smoking remains important.
However, it is clear that e-cigarette advertisements and packaging are no longer primarily targeted at smokers, but at impressionable young people. Companies are looking to tap into young people to expand their lucrative markets.
Getting young people addicted to nicotine also ensures the longevity of these companies. Rachel de Sousa, Children's Commissioner for England, also stressed that for many young children, e-cigarettes are actually a gateway to tobacco smoking “rather than a quit strategy”.
The NHS reported that people are twice as likely to quit smoking if they use e-cigarettes.
There are calls for the UK government to tackle the issue. Proposals range from prioritizing mandatory plain packaging for e-cigarettes to requiring more visible warning labels on products. This will raise awareness about the health effects of long-term nicotine abuse.
But there are also concerns that this kind of practice could make e-cigarettes less attractive to smokers looking to quit. This is undesirable because the NHS reports that people are twice as likely to quit smoking using e-cigarettes compared to other nicotine replacement products.
However, King's College London and Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) carried out research that may provide insight into the most effective course of action for the government on this issue. The study showed that removing bold, brightly colored brands from e-cigarettes could deter children and young people from purchasing them, while maintaining their appeal to adults.
The study was conducted on approximately 2,500 11- to 18-year-olds and 12,000 adults. Each group was asked whether they thought their co-workers would be less interested in e-cigarettes if they were sold in plain green or white packaging. The general consensus was that teenagers were more likely to believe that this type of measure would reduce demand for e-cigarettes, whereas adults saw no such reduction in interest.
For young people, vaping culture among colleagues is blatant and undeniable
Therefore, with the number of children and young people vaping increasing, this study, combined with the results of similar studies, is expected to prompt governments to act by imposing regulations on e-cigarette companies. Should.
Promisingly, Rishi Sunak earlier this year expressed great concern about e-cigarette companies targeting children and young people, and confirmed that the issue was under government consideration. For young people, the vaping culture among their peers is blatant and undeniable. Therefore, this outbreak should be of paramount importance to government officials concerned about the health and well-being of society's youngest members.
Image: eliquidsuk via Unsplash
