Canada's Teen Vaping Rates Among World's Highest

On May 17th, as reported by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canadian teenagers' frequent use of electronic cigarettes ranks among the highest in the world. Experts point out that the federal government has failed to take action and widely available flavored e-cigarettes are exacerbating this increasingly serious crisis.

The usage of electronic cigarettes among students remains high.

According to the "Canadian Student Tobacco, Alcohol and Drugs Survey" released by officials, 29% of Canadian students have tried e-cigarettes. The survey covered a total of 61,096 students in grades 7 through 12 in 9 provinces. Overall, this number has decreased slightly, lower than the 34% in 2018-2019, but it is higher in older age groups. 41% of students in grades 10 through 12 have tried e-cigarettes.

In Canada, the frequent use of electronic cigarettes is quite common.

In the past month, 17% of students have used electronic cigarettes, slightly lower than the 20% reported in 2018-2019. However, among students in grades 10 to 19, the number has risen again, with over 24% becoming monthly users.

According to a survey, 8% of all surveyed students use e-cigarettes daily, while the percentage is close to 12% among students in grades 10 to 12.

Experts say that this is one of the highest ratios ever recorded in history.

David Hammond, a public health professor at the University of Waterloo and a research fellow in Canadian youth e-cigarette usage, stated that...

Data confirms that Canada has one of the highest rates of teenage e-cigarette use in the world, particularly concerning daily usage.

He added, "We are basically at the highest historical level of daily e-cigarette consumption.

Compared to 2017, this figure is significantly higher. At that time, only 10% of students had used e-cigarettes in the past 30 days, while 11% of students reported using e-cigarettes daily.

The association with disposable e-cigarette products.

The results indicate that the surge in electronic cigarette use among adolescents is related to the popularity of disposable products.

The disposable e-cigarette product comes with thousands of puffs pre-loaded, eliminating the need for refill or pod replacement, making it convenient and portable.

Rob Cunningham, Senior Policy Analyst at the Canadian Cancer Society, has expressed concern over the persistently high rates of e-cigarette use among teenagers, calling it an unacceptable and longstanding issue.

He further pointed out:

We need the federal government to take immediate action to ban the sale of flavored electronic cigarettes, as it is one of the factors contributing to the high usage rates.

Experts are urging for stronger measures to be taken to curb the rampant use of e-cigarettes among young people. They believe that increasing regulatory efforts, intensifying education and awareness campaigns, and restricting advertising and sales channels for e-cigarettes are important steps in addressing this issue.

References:

. According to recent data, Canada has one of the highest rates of teenage vaping in the world.