UK study: 5.1 million vaping users
According to a study in the United Kingdom, the use of vapes has reached 5.1 million among Britons aged 16 and over, and the use of vapes is highest between the ages of 16 and 24. At 15.8%, more than 1 million non-smokers started using vapes, a seven-fold increase in usage within three years.
More than a million non-smokers have started using vapes
According to a recent report in the Guardian, research data shows that one in 10 people over the age of 16 in the UK uses vapes. One million smokers in the UK have started using vapes, a seven-fold increase in three years. That has alarmed health experts.
Vape use among adults has remained stable until 2021, with one in every 200 people using vapes, or about 133,000 people. However, a study published in a journal. The Lancet Public Health, suggests that by 2024, the rate has risen sharply to one in 28 people, equivalent to 1.006 million.
According to figures released by the Office for National Statistics this week, there are 5.1 million vape users aged 16 and over in the UK, with 16 to 24-year-olds having the highest use of vapes at 15.8%.
The study also found that most vape customers who had never smoked regularly used vapes daily and had been doing so for a long time. This rapid growth is often driven by young people. Studies have shown that 14% of very smokers in the UK aged 18-24 now use vapes.
The researchers warn that the UK government’s plan to ban single-use vapes may not solve the problem, as some brands have already launched reusable products. Experts suggest that the appeal of vape brands should be reduced through stricter laws and regulations.
Supervision of product appearance, packaging and marketing
Professor Jamie Brown, Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care, University College London (UCL). While measures to ban single-use vapes may not be enough to solve the problem, as these measures are unlikely to reduce the effectiveness of vapes in smoking cessation, stricter controls on product appearance and packaging marketing could be introduced. He noted that as of 2023, the overall prevalence of vapes appears to be stabilizing, which may provide a reasonable basis for taking these measures and evaluating their effectiveness.
The study analyzed survey data from 153,073 adults in the United Kingdom between 2016 and 2024, of whom 94,107 had never smoked regularly. Data show that from 2016 to 2020, the proportion of vapes smoked by never-smokers was 0.5%. But by April 2024, that number had increased to 3.5%, that is, more than 1 million people, more than half of whom were between the ages of 18-24.
The researchers also found that people who had never smoked regularly in recent years were generally younger and the proportion of women increased. They prefer to use disposable devices and e-vapers with high concentrations of smoke tar and mainly buy goods at supermarkets or convenience stores.
In a statement released by the UK Department of Health and Social Care. The department stressed that while vapes can be effective in helping adults quit smoking, children who do not smoke should not use vapes. The Tobacco and vape Bill will protect future generations from cigarettes and nicotine, save countless lives, and relieve pressure on China’s medical service system, the ministry said.
