The e-cigarette industry has become a major gateway for new smokers. According to the National Council for the Prevention of Smoking (CNPT), vaping quadruples the chance of becoming a traditional smoker. Additionally, eight out of 10 underage smokers initiate this consumption, a trend that is increasing among girls.
More smoking girls
According to a CNPT survey, 1 in 10 minors aged 14 to 18 smoke daily. If we look at how many people smoked occasionally in the past 30 days, that number grows to one in four. The data also shows that more and more underage girls smoke: 34.2% of boys smoke, compared with 27.3% of boys surveyed.
Alba, 16, admitted that while she wasn’t a big fan of e-cigarettes, she had tried them and smoked them occasionally when she was with friends.
“They vape a lot, especially when we’re out at parties or in large groups. It’s not that I enjoy it, but I don’t dislike it either. I don’t think it increases the chances of smoking, in most cases In this case, it encourages you to try it but doesn’t make you smoke, because e-cigarettes can be a substitute,” the young woman told COPE.
However, Alicia, also 16, claims she has never vaped or smoked, nor have any of her friends. “I’m still young and I don’t think smoking is necessary, at our age or anything. It hurts your future,” another girl said.
The Dangers of Social Networking
Nine out of 10 young people are exposed to e-cigarettes and e-cigarettes through social media. This content is shared and normalized by so-called “influencers” and, to be precise, reaches more girls than boys.
“Many influencers tell you not to smoke, but at the same time, they are vaping. Girls are the ones who follow such accounts the most on social networks, which increases the chances of imitating smoking. When we do prevention “We have to take into account the fact that more and more young girls are smoking,” Dr Francisco Pascual of the National Council for Smoking Prevention told COPE.
health consequences
E-cigarettes and their derivatives contain nicotine, which is responsible for addiction. Therefore, consuming them can also make us addicted to such products, which also contain heavy metals and carcinogens that can lead to lung diseases.
So, as Dr. Pascual explains, although the likelihood of immediate lesions is not as high as with traditional tobacco, this type of consumption is not without risk.
“If we want to have a healthy population, I wouldn’t give my son an e-cigarette because I know it can cause lung disease or he might be more susceptible to bronchitis or asthma attacks or allergies, among other things. Substances released by e-cigarettes. This vapor can also cause cancer,” the doctor stressed.
Europe has more restrictions
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently recommended banning smoking and vaping in education centers and banning the sale of nicotine and other tobacco-related products near schools.
More and more countries around us are beginning to pay attention to such products. An example is France, where the government is working to ban e-cigarettes and disposable e-cigarettes due to an increase in young smokers.
France hopes to follow in the footsteps of Germany, which has banned the sale of flavored e-cigarettes. Ireland is holding a national consultation on this. In Belgium, online sales of such products are already restricted.
Francisco Pascual believes: “These measures can be preventive, even in a restrictive or even coercive way. They are logical recommendations. We cannot allow behavior that is later imitated in certain settings, such as schools.”
outdated legislation
In Spain, there is a draft of a new comprehensive plan aimed at tackling smoking among young people, but it remains “in a drawer”.
The CNPT believes that political instability means that this issue is not a current priority and that legislation based on the current situation is necessary because current legislation is outdated.
“We got the idea from the committee that there should be a decree in this sense and that it is unique. The problem is that with the change of ministers and the current political situation, it has not yet been put on the table.” Doctor , Passover.
Nearly 54,000 people die every year in Spain from diseases caused by tobacco consumption. In addition, it is estimated that approximately 6,200 passive smokers die each year.