Alarming Number of People Now Use E-Cigarettes, Warns Global Health Organization
Over 100 hundred million individuals, including at minimum 15 million minors, presently utilize e-cigarettes, fueling a new wave of nicotine addiction, as stated by latest worldwide public health findings.
Minors are, usually, nine times more likely than mature individuals to vape, based on current worldwide figures.
E-cigarettes are driving a "new wave" of nicotine habit, remarked a senior health official. "They are advertised as harm reduction but, truthfully, are addicting children on nicotine earlier and threaten undermining decades of progress."
Young People Being 'Targeted'
"Millions of individuals are stopping, or refraining from tobacco use because of tobacco restriction initiatives by countries throughout the globe," the official commented.
"As an answer to this significant advancement, the tobacco industry is pushing back with recent nicotine devices, aggressively focusing on youth. Governments must act more rapidly and more vigorously in enacting established tobacco-control measures," the representative continued.
The e-cigarette statistics are an approximation since several states - 109 in total, and several in Africa and South-East Asia - do not gather statistics.
Per the report, as of February this year, at least 86 million e-cigarette consumers were adults, mainly in developed nations.
And at minimum 15 million adolescents aged 13 and 15 currently use e-cigarettes, according to research from 123 states.
While several states have tried to implement e-cigarette rules to tackle underage vaping in recent years, by the conclusion of 2024, 62 nations even now had no policy in effect, and 74 nations had no minimum age at which e-cigarettes may be purchased, reports the medical organization.
Simultaneously, tobacco consumption has been declining - from an estimated 1.38 billion individuals in 2000 to 1.2 billion in 2024.
Prevalence of tobacco consumption among women dropped the largest - from 11% in 2010 to 6.6% in 2024.
For males, the decrease was from 41.4% in 2010 to 32.5% in 2024.
But one in five of mature individuals globally still uses tobacco.
Cigarette consumption is connected to several conditions, such as cancer.
Experts say vaping is significantly less damaging than traditional cigarettes, and can aid you quit smoking. It is not recommended for those who don't smoke.
Electronic cigarettes avoid burning tobacco and do not create resin or carbon monoxide, two of the most dangerous substances in tobacco smoke. They have nicotine, which might be dependency-creating.