
Young people use e-cigarettes at higher rates than adults in many countries
Washington, DC, May 30, 2024 (PAHO) – The World Health Organization (WHO) and STOP, a global tobacco industry watchdog, today launch “Engaging the next generation”, a report that highlights how the tobacco and nicotine industry designs products, implements marketing campaigns, and works to shape policy environments that help the world’s young addicts.
This comes just ahead of World No Tobacco Day, which falls on May 31, when WHO is amplifying the voices of young people calling on governments to protect them from being targeted by the tobacco and nicotine industry.
The report shows that globally, an estimated 37 million children aged 13 to 15 use tobacco and, in many countries, the rate of e-cigarette use among adolescents exceeds that of adults.
In the Americas region, 5.4% of adolescents use electronic cigarettes, a figure alarmingly close to the 6% who consume conventional cigarettes. “We are talking about people under 15 years of age, so this prevalence should be zero,” highlighted Dr. Jarbas Barbosa, director of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).
“We join with young people to encourage all PAHO Member States to adopt a comprehensive approach to tobacco control and nicotine addiction, countering industry interference tactics,” said Dr. Jarbas Barbosa.
Despite significant progress in reducing tobacco use, the emergence of e-cigarettes and other new tobacco and nicotine products pose a serious threat to youth and tobacco control. Studies show that e-cigarette use increases conventional cigarette use nearly three times, particularly among non-smoking youth.
«History repeats itself as the tobacco industry tries to sell the same nicotine to our children in different packaging,» said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the WHO. «These industries are actively targeting schools, children and young people with new products that are essentially a candy-flavored trap. How can they talk about harm reduction when they market these dangerous and highly addictive products to children?
These industries continue to market their products to young people with attractive flavors such as candy and fruits. Research conducted in the United States of America found that more than 70% of young e-cigarette users would quit if the products were only available in tobacco flavor.
«These industries are intentionally designing products and using marketing strategies that appeal directly to children,» said Dr. Ruediger Krech, Director of Health Promotion at WHO. «The use of kid-friendly flavors like cotton candy and bubblegum, combined with sleek, colorful toy-like designs, is a blatant attempt to addict young people to these harmful products.»
These deceptive tactics highlight the urgent need for strict regulations to protect young people from a life of harmful dependence.
WHO urges governments to protect young people from the use of tobacco, e-cigarettes and other nicotine products by banning or strictly regulating these products. WHO recommendations include creating 100% smoke-free indoor public places, banning flavored e-cigarettes, banning marketing, advertising and promotion, higher taxes, increased public awareness of deceptive tactics used by industry and supporting youth-led education and awareness initiatives. .
“Young addicts represent a lifetime of profits for the industry,” said Jorge Alday, Director of STOP at Vital Strategies. “That’s why the industry is aggressively pushing to create an environment that makes it cheap, attractive and easy for young people to get hooked on. If policymakers do not act, current and future generations could face a new wave of harm, characterized by addiction to and use of many tobacco and nicotine products, including cigarettes.”
Youth advocates around the world are taking a stand against the destructive influence and manipulative marketing of the tobacco and nicotine industry. They are exposing these deceptive practices and advocating for their own tobacco-free future. Youth organizations from around the world participated in the latest session of the Conference of the Parties to the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (COP10) to convey a powerful message to policymakers: “Future generations They will remember you as those who protected them or those who failed them and put them in danger.”
Dr Tedros recognized the following youth organizations among the World No Tobacco Day 2024 awards:
- Thailand Youth Institute, Kingdom of Thailand
- Tobacco Abstinence Club, Federal Republic of Nigeria
- Young Argentine leader, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Children
These inspiring young leaders are protecting their generation from an industry that sees them as profits, not people.
By working together, governments, public health organizations, civil society and empowered youth can create a world where the next generation is free from the dangers of tobacco and nicotine addiction.
Tobacco kills more than eight million people every year around the world, one million of them in the Americas. In this region, smoking is responsible for 16% of deaths from cardiovascular diseases, 25% from cancer, 52% from chronic respiratory diseases and 11% from diabetes.