According to official data that indicates the scale of e-cigarette popularity in the country, one in ten secondary school students in England currently use e-cigarettes.
Teenagers are avoiding tobacco and instead opting for trendy electronic devices, which have become the newest must-have accessory to brighten up classrooms. Their popularity has dramatically increased and raised concerns that the UK is slowly sleepwalking into a public health "disaster".
Leading experts expressed concern today over the popularity of these small items (priced at only £4), accusing manufacturers of targeting children with colorful packaging, fruit flavors, and trendy names.
A new call is also demanding the abolition of advertising regulations. The Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health is calling for strict action to prevent "generations" from becoming addicted to nicotine.
NHS Digital conducted a survey last year on the smoking, drug use, and alcohol habits of nearly 10,000 students between the ages of 11 and 15. The study found that 9% of students currently use e-cigarettes, which is the highest on record since the survey began in 2014.
Girls appear to be driving this trend, with their e-cigarette use rate doubling over the past three years, while boys' e-cigarette use rate has remained steady for the past five years.
Experts have also criticized the rise of social media, on which videos demonstrating vaping techniques have received millions of views. A government-funded report this year found that nearly half of users had watched e-cigarette videos on TikTok, Instagram, or Snapchat. Additionally, children's companies have been targeted for their promotion of vaping products.
Although the popularity of electronic cigarettes has increased, with a 50% growth rate in just three years, the proportion of students smoking traditional cigarettes has remained stable. Currently, one in every 33 students smokes, compared to a peak of one in four during the 1990s.
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