Dutch young people know too little about the risks of vaping

Insufficient awareness of health risks

“Vaping poses major health risks,” says Sabine de Jong, press spokesperson for UNICEF Netherlands. “Yet few young people are aware of these risks, which concerns us.”

Although many young people do know that vaping is bad for their health, fewer than half know exactly which risks are associated with it. For example, more than half of young people do not know that vaping causes DNA damage, which can lead to cancer in the long term. In addition, 48 percent of young people who currently vape do not know that vaping irreversibly disrupts brain development. The fact that vaping increases the risk of concentration problems is the least well known: only 44 percent of young people are aware of this.

Vaping increases with age

The number of young people who say they have vaped at some point increases with age. According to this survey, only 2 percent of 10- and 11-year-olds have ever vaped, while this figure rises to 15 percent among 12- to 14-year-olds and is as high as 31 percent among 15- to 17-year-olds.

Majority support a total ban on vaping

When asked whether there should be a total ban on vaping, 82 percent of young people answered an emphatic ‘yes’. Frequently cited reasons are that it is bad for one’s health, that it smells, that it is addictive and that it causes nuisance for those around them.

Still, there are also young people who see no point in a ban. According to them, being allowed to vape is a personal choice. Another young person says: “There is no ban on weed, cigarettes or alcohol either, is there? And those are just as bad.”

Many young people draw a comparison with the harmfulness of cigarettes. When asked whether cigarettes should also be banned, 80 percent of young people responded positively.

The right to good information

Young people have a clear opinion about what would work to get young people to stop vaping: personal stories from other young people who have themselves experienced negative consequences from vaping. Another method that young people believe would be effective is providing more information about the impact of vaping on your appearance (skin or teeth, and so on).

De Jong: “Young people have the right to good information, including when it comes to their health. Unfortunately, these figures show that many young people still do not have the right information. That needs to improve.”