Vapeboss – The results of the Youth19 vaping survey published in the Australia and New Zealand Journal of Public Health last December, reported that 80% of minors who had vaped and almost 50% of regular vapers, had never smoked before they started vaping.

“The Asthma and Respiratory Foundation (ARFNZ) has been talking about the increase in youth vaping since 2017,” said ARFNZ Chief Executive Letitia Harding.

“The Youth19 research offers more evidence that this is a problem. While vapes can be a useful tool for smokers trying to quit when combined with behavioral support, many children and adolescents choose vapes without ever having smoked. Vapes are not harmless, and can be very addictive. Many studies are now available that show the negative impact of nicotine on adolescent brain development.”

However, a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health in December highlighted that the situation was more positive than led to believe as the increase in vaping led to a decrease in smoking rates, with smoking decreasing from 11.9% in the 2019-2020 survey to 9.4% in 2021.

More importantly, a decrease in smoking rates was recorded among students of all ethnicities, but Māori students led with a 40% decrease. This figure is particularly significant given that smoking has been a particular problem among the Māori population.

ASH Director Deborah Hart added that these results, along with others from recent years, show that young people have achieved the Smokefree 2025 goal of daily smokers being less than 5%. "We are pleased with these results as smoking kills 5000 Kiwis every year."

She added that other studies have shown similar figures. “The Survey results are consistent with trends in young adults shown by the 2021 NZ Health Survey. This is the largest decrease in youth smoking rates in a decade, and it is very encouraging to see young people leading the progress towards a smokefree Aotearoa,” said Hart.