Why young people support the ban of vapes

An exclusive survey shows young people back new laws banning single use vapes, with nine out of 10 believing e-cigarettes are more dangerous or as bad as ciggies. See the full survey results.

Young people say it is easy to get hooked on vapes, with nearly half of those who have tried it saying they are or have been addicted.

An exclusive survey of 15 to 24-year-old Aussies found a quarter have vaped and more than one in six vapers spent $100 a month on their habit.

They also say vaping is harmful with nine out of 10 believing e-cigarettes are more dangerous or as bad as ciggies.

The Big Youth Survey by Year13 – which helps young people transition to study or work after finishing school – also found more than seven in 10 are extremely concerned or very concerned about the long term health effects of vaping.

Young people overwhelmingly back tough new laws banning single use vapes, with nine out of 10 believing e-cigarettes are more dangerous or as bad as ciggies for their health. Picture: iStock

The majority back tough new laws banning single use vapes, with just six per cent against.

The government banned the importation of disposable single use vapes that came into force on January 1.

From March 1 the importation of all other vapes, irrespective of nicotine content or therapeutic claims, will also be banned.

The only way people can legally vape nicotine is by getting a prescription from a doctor.

Year13 co-founder Saxon Phipps said it was not surprising the majority of young people supported the law changes around vaping because this demographic was very health conscious.

“Whilst about a quarter of young people admitted to vaping, the amount of young people vaping daily is about six times higher than those who smoke cigarettes daily so this is evidently concerning for young people seeing it around them,” Mr Phipps said.

“Even more concerning is that two fifths of young people who vape say they are addicted to it, meaning there’s a high likelihood, close to 50 per cent, that anyone who starts vaping could become addicted.”

Mr Phipps said the survey also shows just under two thirds of young people who vape have experienced one or multiple negative health effects from vaping like headaches, difficulty breathing, nausea, chest pain, heart palpitations and vomiting.

“I think in anyone’s eyes that’s worrying,” he said. “For something which is sold as a device for recreational enjoyment it’s causing a lot of ill health effects.”

Before the ban on single use vapes, six out of 10 young people said it was very easy or easy to buy.

Most started vaping out of curiosity, which three in 10 started to help relieve stress, 18 per cent because they wanted to try the flavours and 15 per cent due to social influencers or celebrities.

Mr Phipps said the release of the second annual Year13 survey to be released showed the number of daily vapers were down slightly on last year, and that he expected vapers to trend downwards with the new laws.

Meanwhile, other results from the survey show that 83 per cent of young people have never smoked, while nine per cent said they did only occasionally.

One in 10 drink weekly, but the vast majority – 60 per cent – drink only occasionally or never.

When it comes to drugs, almost eight in 10 said they never took drugs, with 13 per cent saying they did so only occasionally.

Health Minister Mark Butler said the vaping reforms will protect Australians, particularly young people, from the harms of vaping and nicotine dependence.

This year product standards for therapeutic vapes will also be strengthened, including to limit flavours, reduce permissible nicotine concentrations and require pharmaceutical packaging.

“I WISHED I NEVER TOUCHED IT IN THE FIRST PLACE”

Jacob Le started vaping at 15 and is now hooked.

The 19-year-old medical student from western Sydney is on a waiting list, which is several months long, to see a doctor who can prescribe nicotine and help wean him off e-cigarettes.

He said a friend managed to quit that way.

He said the medical profession is not equipped to deal with the number of people like him who want to get off vapes, but need help to do so.

The survey of young people aged 15 to 24 found that four out of 10 who have vaped are or used to be addicted.

“I want to quit because I know this will probably kill me one day, that’s the cold hard truth,” Mr Le said. “It can lead to cancer.”

Jacob Le from Fairfield is now hooked on vaping. Picture: Jonathan Ng

But he said the government needs to do more to stop young kids vaping to begin with.

“At first I thought I’d try it and then one day I passed a garage and bought my own,” Mr Le said.

Now he always has a vape on him and his habit sets him back around $25 a week.

“I wished I never touched it in the first place,” he said.

“I used to play rugby league, I nearly made the top grade, but then Covid hit.

“That’s when I started vaping and I’ve never got back to my physical peak. I have gained weight.”

Mr Le said a lot of vape dealers have been stocking up for months in readiness for the law change.

While he is not worried about being able to purchase vapes at the moment, his nicotine addiction is so bad that if he could not get hold of one he would buy cigarettes, which are far more expensive.

He said banning disposable vapes will force more people to buy vapes or knock-off smokes on the black market.

Originally published as Why young people support the ban of vapes