VAPING rates among 11 to 17-year-olds in Britain appear to have stabilised in 2024 after a 'period of increase', a survey revealed, with a health leader describing it as ‘extremely good news.’
The annual Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) Smokefree GB Youth Survey, collected by YouGov, found that 18 per cent of this age group had tried vaping in 2024, a slight decrease from 20 per cent in 2023.
Colin Cox, director of public health and communities for Cumberland Council, and former director of public health for Cumbria County Council, said: “If the figures have stabilised, that’s extremely good news.
“While it remains true that vaping is considerably safer than smoking, I would encourage current smokers to switch to vaping, it’s not necessarily risk free, so people who don’t currently smoke should not take up vaping.”
The survey showed that 7.2 per cent of young people currently vape, a figure that has 'not significantly increased' since 2022.
Despite concerns about the rise of vaping among young people, the number experimenting with vaping (trying it once or twice) has also seen no significant change, dropping slightly from 11.6 per cent in 2023 to 9.5 per cent in 2024.
READ MORE: Council cracking down on underage vaping and illegal vapes
In 2024, the 18 per cent of 11-17-year-olds who have tried vaping amounts to approximately 980,000 children.
More than half of these (53 per cent of 'ever vapers', or 9.5 per cent of all youth) had only tried it once or twice.
Three per cent of all youth vape less than once a week, 4.2 per cent more than once a week, and 1.3 per cent reported they no longer vape.
Exposure to vape promotion remains high, with 72 per cent of 11 to 17-year-olds reporting they saw some form of vape promotion in 2024.
The main sources of these promotions were in shops (55 per cent) and online (29 per cent).
Mr Cox said: “The rise in youth vaping has been a considerable concern, with evidence suggesting that there are lots of people who would probably never have smoked taking up vaping.
“A lot of this is driven by marketing – and the fact that companies target their marketing towards children and young people is abhorrent.”
Among current vapers aged 11-17, the most popular flavouring to use is ‘fruit flavour,’ with 59 per cent using this most frequently.
The next most popular are those that are sweet flavoured, including chocolate, candy, coffee, and vanilla, with 16 per cent opting for them most frequently.
Mr Cox said: “The Tobacco and Vapes Bill, if passed, will give the government the power to ban advertising of vapes and to restrict the flavours available in order to reduce the vape companies’ ability to lure young people in to the habit.
“This is very welcome and a huge step towards ensuring that young lungs breathe clean air.”
The Government says the Tobacco and Vapes Bill will enable product and information requirements to be imposed in connection with vape products, control advertisement related to them, and make provision about vape-free places.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel
You must verify your phone number before you can comment.
Please enter your phone number below, and a verification code will be sent to you by text message.
Please enter the six-digit verification code sent to you by SMS.
Your verification code has been sent a second time to the mobile phone number you provided.
Your verification code has been sent a third time to the mobile phone number you provided.
You have requested your verification code too many times. Please try again later.
Didn’t receive a code? Send it againThe code you entered has not been recognised.
Please try again
You have failed to enter a correct code after three attempts.
Please try again later.
Your phone number has been verified.
Your phone number has been stored with your account details. We will never use it for anything other than verifying that you are the legitimate owner of this account.