According to research presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress in Barcelona, teenagers with smoking parents are 55% more likely to try electronic cigarettes. In a large-scale study of Irish teenagers, researchers also found that the proportion of those who have tried e-cigarettes is rapidly increasing. While boys are more likely to use e-cigarettes, girls' use is growing at a quicker rate.
Researchers emphasized the risks associated with nicotine addiction and called for more effective regulation to protect children and teenagers.
This study was conducted by a team from the Tobacco Free Research Institute (TFRI) in Dublin, Ireland. The team examined data from 6,216 children aged 17 and 18, including whether their parents smoked during their upbringing.
A study has shown that teenagers whose parents smoke are about 55% more likely to try e-cigarettes and about 51% more likely to try traditional cigarettes.
The team also utilized several Irish datasets, providing the most comprehensive analysis yet of electronic cigarette use among Irish youth, including data on over 10,000 Irish teenagers (aged 16 to 17) to examine the total number of teenagers attempting or regularly using e-cigarettes, and how this has changed over time. This indicates that the proportion of teenagers who have tried e-cigarettes has risen from 23% in 2014 to 39% in 2019.
The primary reasons that teenagers try e-cigarettes are curiosity (66%) and their friends using them (29%). Only 3% of people say it is to quit smoking. The proportion of people trying e-cigarettes for the first time who have never used tobacco has increased from 32% in 2015 to 68% in 2019.
According to Professor Luke Clancy, Director General of TFRI, "We have found that an increasing number of Irish teenagers are using e-cigarettes, a trend that is emerging in other parts of the world. People believe that e-cigarettes are a better alternative to smoking, but our research suggests this is not the case for teenagers who have not previously tried cigarettes. This indicates that for young people, vaping is a gateway to nicotine addiction.
Finally, researchers examined the data of 3,421 16-year-old children in detail to understand whether there were differences between boys and girls. Although boys were more likely to use e-cigarettes, researchers found that the percentage of girls using them increased more rapidly. In 2015, 23% of girls reported trying e-cigarettes, while in 2019 it was 39%.
Dr. Salome Sunday, a researcher, testified to Congress, "We can see that parents and friends have an influence on adolescents' decision to try e-cigarettes, and this is important because these are factors we can try to change. However, the government needs to play a role by enacting laws to protect children and young people. We have already done this with smoking, and we need to do the same with e-cigarettes.
Dr. Joan Hanafin, Chief Research Officer, commented, "We can see a rapid change in the number of young people using e-cigarettes, so we need to continue monitoring the situation in Ireland and around the world.
Professor Jonathan Grigg, chairman of the European Respiratory Society's tobacco control committee, was not involved in this study. He stated, "These findings are concerning, not only for young people in Ireland but for families worldwide. We already know that children of smoking parents are more likely to smoke themselves. This study suggests that young people are also influenced by parents who start using e-cigarettes and become addicted to nicotine.
He also stated, "We have found that electronic cigarettes can harm the lungs, blood vessels, and brains. We need to do more work to protect children and adolescents from these harms.
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