GENEVA: E-cigarettes are fuelling an “alarming” new wave of nicotine habit, with tens of millions of youngsters now hooked on vaping, the World Well being Group warned Monday (Oct 6).
In nations which have the information, youngsters are on common 9 instances extra doubtless than adults to vape, the WHO stated.
The UN well being company stated the trade was selling vapes as supposedly much less dangerous merchandise than cigarettes – however in actual fact was aggressively concentrating on younger folks and getting youngsters addicted.
Greater than 100 million individuals are vaping, in line with the WHO’s first international estimate of e-cigarette use.
“The numbers are alarming,” the company stated.
They embrace a minimum of 86 million adults, principally in high-income nations, and a minimum of 15 million youngsters aged 13 to fifteen.
“E-cigarettes are fuelling a brand new wave of nicotine habit,” Etienne Krug, the WHO’s director of well being determinants, promotion and prevention, stated in a press release.
“They’re marketed as hurt discount however, in actuality, are hooking youngsters on nicotine earlier and danger undermining a long time of progress.”
Globally, individuals are smoking much less, with the variety of tobacco customers dropping from 1.38 billion in 2000 to 1.2 billion in 2024, whereas the world’s inhabitants has swelled.
