Alarming number of people now vape, says WHO

More than 100 million people, including at least 15 million children, use e-cigarettes, fuelling a new wave of nicotine addiction, the World Health Organization (WHO) is warning.

Children are, on average, nine times more likely than adults to vape, it says, based on available global figures.

The WHO’s Dr Etienne Krug said e-cigarettes were fuelling a “new wave” of nicotine addiction. “They are marketed as harm reduction but, in reality, are hooking kids on nicotine earlier and risk undermining decades of progress.”

WHO Director General, Dr Tedros, accused the tobacco industry of “agressively targeting” young people.

“Millions of people are stopping, or not taking up, tobacco use thanks to tobacco control efforts by countries around the world,” he said.

“In response to this strong progress, the tobacco industry is fighting back with new nicotine products, aggressively targeting young people. Governments must act faster and stronger in implementing proven tobacco-control policies,” he added.

The vaping figures are an estimate since some countries – 109 in all, and many in African and South-East Asia – do not gather data.

According to the report, as of February this year, at least 86 million e-cigarette users were adults, mostly in high-income countries.

And at least 15 million teenagers aged between 13 and 15 already vape, based on surveys from 123 countries.

While many nations have made efforts to introduce e-cigarettes regulations to tackle child vaping in recent years, by the end of 2024, 62 countries still had no policy in place, and 74 countries had no minimum age at which e-cigarettes may be purchased, says the WHO.

Meanwhile, tobacco use has been decreasing – from an estimated 1.38 billion users in 2000 to 1.2 billion in 2024.

Prevalence of tobacco use among women dropped the most – from 11% in 2010 to 6.6% in 2024.

Among men, the decrease was from 41.4% in 2010 to 32.5% in 2024.

But one in five adults globally still uses tobacco.

Smoking is linked to many diseases, including cancer.

Experts say vaping is far less harmful than cigarettes, and can help you quit smoking. It is not recommended for non-smokers.

E-cigarettes do not burn tobacco and do not produce tar or carbon monoxide, two of the most damaging elements in tobacco smoke. They contain nicotine, which can be addictive.